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In what was mostly a dull affair, it's difficult to find any one moment that defines this scoreless outcome. But Toronto did well to fend off a flurry of activity inside their box at the 79th minute that helped earn the draw.
Vancouver forward Cornelius Stewart came out the winner on TFC's left side against Raivis Hscanovics. He put the ball inside for Marcus Haber before a blocked shot squirted back out to Stewart. From there he sent a cross to the back post for Takashi Hirano, but the Japanese midfielder's header was kicked away by Reds' keeper Jon Conway and out for a corner, before any more trouble for Toronto.
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Vancouver's goal scoring woes could have been coupled with a troubling evening defensively, if in-form Toronto attackers Dwayne De Rosario and second half substitute Chad Barrett could have delivered.
However, Vancouver did an excellent job of keeping De Rosario and his first half strike partner O'Brian White in check. Toronto didn't get a single shot on target until the 82nd minute, when goalkeeper Jay Nolly punched away De Rosario's shot from an angle, 12 yards to his left. Barrett was largely ineffective, as was his predecessor, White. Much of Toronto's attacking woes can be attributed to Whitecaps' defender Wes Knight.
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While Barrett won battles at the offensive end, in Toronto's half Nana Attakora was the wall that MLS-leading goal scorer Edson Buddle and top playmaker Landon Donovan continuously hit going forward.
The reigning Canadian U-20 player of the year was ruthless in getting the better of Galaxy's U.S. World Cup shortlisted forwards. He blocked numerous shots inside the area and with some help from his fellow defenders, midfielders and Frei's heroics, Attakora put in that leading performance Toronto supporters have long sought from a centre back on a regular basis. Attakora is getting close to that level of consistency.
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Toronto (4-4-2 formation): Stefan Frei, Nana Attakora, Adrian Cann, Nick Garcia, Maxim Usanov, Nick LaBrocca, Martin Saric, Sam Cronin, Amadou Sanyang, Dwayne De Rosario, Chad Barrett.
Los Angeles (4-4-2 formation): Josh Saunders, Bryan Jordan, Omar Gonzalez, Gregg Berhalter, Todd Dunivant, Michael Stephens, Chris Birchall, Juninho, Jovan Kirovski, Edson Buddle, Landon Donovan.
Goals: NONE
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Wednesday, May 19 v. Vancouver
NCC - Match 4
10:30 PM (RSN)
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GAME NOTES:
Vancouver is the only one of the three Nutrilite Canadian Championship teams to not have won this title. Toronto taking maximum points from Montreal in two matches, Whitecaps will be desperate to beat TFC.
Toronto could clinch the title with a win against Vancouver but it won't be easy. Vancouver holds an all-time edge of two wins, one loss and a draw against Toronto in the NCC. They drew Montreal 0-0 in an USSF Division II match on Saturday.
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| 15-7 |
Los Angeles outshot Toronto (4-1 on goal). |
| 60% |
Los Angeles had the greater possession during the match, particularly in the latter stages. |
| 20 |
Number of fouls in the match (Toronto with 11) |
| 5-2 |
Los Angeles had the edge on corners. |
| 4 |
Number of clean sheets for Stefan Frei in 2010 - two in MLS. |
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"We've grown as a team, we are still growing ... I'm disappointed that we didn't win ... we have a group of guys finally starting to understand what it means to play for each other." - Preki in his postgame interview on his team coming together and fighting for every point.
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"This point means everything ... we deserved a point and weren't going to give it away ... we've come a long way. I don't have to babysit them in the back (laughing) ... we are stringing passes together and gelling." - Stefan Frei after the game, giving credit to the fighting spirit of Toronto's players in front of him. |
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"We knew we had to contain Buddle and Donovan and we have been able to do that so far. We have to stay focused, especially on set pieces" - Nana Attakora at halftime on keeping Buddle and Donvan at bay. The focus continued in the second half. |
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