U-Sector – The Original Toronto FC Supporters Group

Cruz Az-who-l?

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Cockiness begets cockiness.

Cruz Azul displayed the unbecoming characteristic in spades last night, and when all was said and done, it was Toronto FC that had a swagger to its step.

It all started with the report that the Mexican side had trained on artificial turf in preparation for yesterday’s CONCACAF Champions League Group A opener at BMO Field. Clearly, Cruz Azul couldn’t be bothered to look into the matter to find that that Toronto had, indeed, installed natural grass back in March.

With scouting like that, one has to wonder what sort of research the team from Mexico City had actually done on their opponents. From the opening kick, it was apparent that they really hadn’t done much at all.

Everyone who watches Preki’s side knows that Toronto tends to apply high, full-field pressure against teams that are perceived to be an offensive threat. It happened again last night, with the Reds chasing down everything from the instant the opening whistle was blown.

Cruz Azul’s mixture of A and B players lined up in a curious formation that included a three-man backline. Sure, they are the better side overall, but it was like Los Cementeros were clearly thumbing their noses at TFC’s home field advantage, one that hasn’t seen the Reds lose a competitive match at BMO Field in over 12 months. They knew that they were the best team to ever set foot on the new grass pitch by the lake shore, so obviously they would be immune to the effects of our charming little stadium.

Not quite.

Within two  minutes, their cockiness was their own undoing. A combination of Toronto hustle and shambolic defending saw the Reds go up before most of the crowd (outside of the packed-past-fire-code south end) had even taken their seats. Martin Saric, returning from a month-long absence due to injury, opportunistically headed the ball into the gaping Cruz Azul net, and for the rest of the first half TFC toyed with the shell-shocked Mexican giants.

It really was the most dominating half of football Toronto has ever produced, led by the coming out party of Spanish designated player Mista. The former Depor man had arrived to Toronto in less than optimal shape, and was looking like 2010′s version of Laurent Robert in the weeks since his signing.

That all changed last night, with the Spaniard looking like a man possessed. His fitness was finally starting to catch up to his obvious talent, and by the end of the first half he had been involved in the creation of one goal and was the goalscorer of another.

Cruz Azul coach Enrique Meza finally decided to show Toronto some respect after 45 minutes of one-way traffic, bringing in his big guns for the second half. The biggest, dirtiest gun of them all — Mexican national team stalwart Gerardo Torrado — had the most influence, with rough-and-tumble antics that would make hard men like Saric and Maxim Usanov blush.

Not that the head official seemed to notice. Jamaican referee Courtney Campbell, a fairly prominent CONCACAF official, was absolutely dreadful yesterday, constantly letting the Mexican side simultaneously act like thugs and nancies throughout the night.

Campbell fell for just about every dive the Cruz Azul players attempted, while also allowing the goonery of Torrado and company to continue unabated. It culminated in a laughable sequence in the dying minutes of the game in which Dwayne De Rosario — who was holding the ball up in the Cruz Azul end in an effort to kill the clock — was clearly choked by Torrado, which somehow led to both men being booked by Campbell. De Rosario obviously needs to control his throat, as it got into the way of one too many Mexican hands for the Jamaican referee’s liking.

Predictably, Los Cementeros had more of the play in the second half, but it was a case of too-little, too-late as the Reds had already locked down the match, both physically and mentally, despite the best efforts of an upgraded Cruz Azul side.

Now Toronto has three points in hand that nobody expected them to have. Besides the obvious, one huge positive is that TFC’s performance should have awoken a sleep-walking giant, with Cruz Azul still having to play the other two Group A opponents with, as coach Meza stated in the post-match presser, “a sour taste” in their mouths.

That doesn’t bode well for Real Salt Lake — who currently boast an even better home unbeaten streak than the Reds — or Panamanian side Arabe Unido, as the Mexican powerhouse will now by chasing points and trying to prove a point. Hell, it probably doesn’t bode well for TFC in the return leg in Mexico City, where Cruz Azul is utterly dominant.

But screw it, Toronto just won the biggest match of its history, and the tournament just started.

“Tell all of Mexico… you got f—ed by T.O.!!”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Pros and Cons for the CONCACAF Champions League Group A match played between Toronto FC and CDSC Cruz Azul on Tuesday, August 17, 2010:

PROS

• Mista finally proving his worth, and doing so in style.
• Martin Saric returning in the best possible way, with a goal less than three minutes into the biggest match of TFC’s history.
• Much maligned fullback duo Raivis Hscanovics and Maxim Usanov stepping into the lineup and stepping up to the challenge.
• Toronto’s midfield, led by Julian de Guzman, completely outclassing their counterparts.
• The crowd, while smaller than usual, was about five times louder and much more involved.

CONS

• Courtney Campbell. Awful officiating from a referee that seemed to want to let Cruz Azul back into the match.
• O’Brian White continues to lumber out there in his limited minutes, looking out of sorts once again.

HIGHLIGHTS

Posted by Rudi Schuller