NEW ENGLAND, MA – Toronto FC earned a draw at Gillette Stadium. This was the first time TFC had back-to-back shutouts in MLS play since 2020. This is while the Revolution, despite not having many great scoring chances, had Đorđe Petrović to save the day and earn the point at home.
Toronto FC earned an impressive draw on the road
Three keys to the game
Full Game Summary:#TFCLive played very well defensively.#NERevs goalkeeper, Đorđe Petrović, was the player of the game.
Giacomo Vrioni had a chance to win the game late for the Revolution, but his shot was off target.#NEvTOR | 0-0 | #MLS
— Last Word on Soccer (@LastWordSC) July 31, 2022
First half
Lorenzo Insigne’s first shot of the game just missed the net in the fourth minute. Lukas MacNaughton made a great defensive play in the eighth minute of play. Toronto played well defensively, not allowing New England to make a play. Alex Bono made a good, but easy save in the 19-minute. Jayden Nelson’s shot skipped past the post. Sebastian Lletget’s pass was intercepted. Wilfrid Kaptoum’s shot missed the target.
They have been able to cross the ball consistently into Toronto FC’s box. MacNaughton and TFC’s defence has played very well. Carlos Gil’s pass to DeJuan Hones in the 36-minute was a bit wide and it ended in a turnover. Federico Bernardeschi won a corner in the 38-minute.
44’ #NERevs goalkeeper, Đorđe Petrović, made a fantastic save from #TFCLive’s Lorenzo Insigne from close range! #NewEnglandRevolution#NEvTOR | 0-0 | #MLSpic.twitter.com/00vrzuowkz
— Last Word on Soccer (@LastWordSC) July 31, 2022
Bernardesci then delivered a terrific pass to Lorenzo Insigne in the 44-minute, but his shot was superbly stopped by Petrović. Matt Polster’s shot missed the target.
Second half
Henry Kessler made a great defensive play on Bernardesci. Michael Bradley made a great block in the 54-minute.
58’ #TFCLive was this close to taking the lead! #TorontoFC#NEvTOR | 0-0 | #MLS pic.twitter.com/qwJ4wpeXDc
— Raheem (@bashirra) July 31, 2022
Bernadesci’s shot in the 58-minute from long-range was terrifically struck, but it crashed off the post. Chris Mavinga played great defence as he won a free-kick in the 60-minute. Criscito made a good diving defensive play to win his team a goal kick from a dangerous position.
81’ #NERevs goalkeeper, Đorđe Petrović, made another fantastic save! This time from Lorenzo Insigne’s penalty kick! #NewEnglandRevolution#NEvTOR | 0-0 | #MLSpic.twitter.com/pk9BfxBbxl
— Last Word on Soccer (@LastWordSC) July 31, 2022
It was a controversial call as Deandre Kerr went down inside the penalty area. The replay showed that Kerr seemed to have brought Polster down and himself while trying to get the ball. It was a very tight call and one that could have gone either way. Petrović, though, made sure that did not matter. He made a fantastic save in the 72-minute from Lorenzo Insigne. Vroni’s header was off-target in the 74-minute as Criscito made a terrific defensive play.
Lukas MacNaughton then made three consecutive defensive clearances, meaning he made 10 defensive clearances in the game. Vrioni had a chance to score, but his shot in the 90+3-minute from very close range went wide. Jahkeele-Marshall Rutty won the ball in the 90+4-minute of play.
Game Summary:
A clean sheet to commemorate 150 🧤
Congrats, Bones! pic.twitter.com/3OtzqrIKdg
— Toronto FC (@TorontoFC) July 31, 2022
Both Toronto FC and the New England Revolution made no progress in the MLS Cup Playoffs race as Inter Miami CF tied with FC Cincinnati in a 4-4 draw. This means that the Revs are still two points and TFC still five points behind the final playoff spot, which is currently occupied by Cincinnati. Nevertheless, this was still a good performance for Toronto after losing a heartbreaker to the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the Canadian Championship Final.
This is what Bob Bradley said after the game against the Revolution according to Toronto FC:
This team is still a work in progress, as TFC had trouble involving the Designated Players in the first half. However, overall, this was a good road game performance, even though they did not get the win, Toronto should use this game as a blueprint for future games on the road.
Orlando City SC hosts the Revolution at 7:30 pm ET at Exploria Stadium. This is while Nashville SC will host TFC at 8:00 p.m. ET at GEODIS Park. The game between Nashville and Toronto will be televised nationally on TSN and the game will additionally be shown on MyTV30.
This is while the Orlando and the New England game will be shown live on MLS Live on DAZN, Fox 35 Plus, TV38, and MyRITV & CoziTV.
Three Takeaways to the Game:
Lukas MacNaughton and Domenico Criscito played well for Toronto FC. There were many instances where the defence stepped up for Toronto. Criscito made a good diving defensive play to win his team a goal kick from a dangerous position. Lukas MacNaughton also cleared more than eight balls for Toronto as he was needed time and time again, which is partly why New England did not have many scoring chances. It also shows that players from CPL can go and play at the MLS level.
Giacomo Vrioni could have won the game for the Revolution. Yes, the Revs were not particularly great against Toronto. They still had a chance though to win the game. Arnór Traustason delivered a terrific cross to Vrioni in the centre of the box, but Vrioni was unable to put the ball into the back of the net.
Đorđe Petrović was the player of the game. Petrović may have only made three saves, however, two of them came up big against Insigne of Toronto FC. The first save displayed terrific instincts to stop Insigne’s shot from close-range. Then in the second half, Petrović made an acrobatic save, just getting a touch of Insigne’s penalty kick, which hit the post and out of the back of the net.
Photo Credit: Toronto FC on July 31, 2022.
