Richie Laryea and Alejandro Pozuelo scored early in the second half as Toronto FC responded to interim manager Javier Perez's daring double-substitution and rallied to a 2-2 draw against New York City FC on Saturday night at BMO Field.
Toronto's early second-half surge came after Perez removed both Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley at halftime following a dominant first half from the visitors.
Bradley's exit marked the first time the TFC captain had failed to complete 90 minutes in a start since July 2018. Ifunayachi Achara and Ralph Priso-Mbongue came on and both players helped set up Pozuelo's equalizer.
NYCFC's new arrival Santiago Rodriguez opened the scoring with his second goal in as many appearances, and Ismael Tajouri-Shradi added an early second for the visitors, who extended their unbeaten run to five matches.
Toronto had the better chances to win it late, the best coming when Sean Johnson somehow denied Nick DeLeon's first-time redirection from close range.
But the Reds settled for a fourth consecutive draw in as many home matches since Perez relieved former manager Chris Armas.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Saturday had the feel of symbolic transition for Toronto. In addition to Perez removing TFC's captain and second-leading all-time scorer in Bradley and Altidore, his insertion of Achara resulted in the 23-year-old's first career MLS assist. The 45-minute shift marked just his second appearance since suffering a torn ACL and LCL in training last summer after scoring on his MLS debut in March 2020. As for NYCFC, they're now five games unbeaten but have drawn two straight on the road – letting points slip away with their weekend trip to Canada.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Toronto scored a pair of stylish goals after the break, but as far as pure aesthetics, it's hard to compete with the exceptional and intricate passing that led to Rodriguez's opener after 12 minutes. It was also the young Uruguayan's second goal in just his second attempt on target in MLS.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Alejandro Pozuelo. Injuries have limited the 2020 Landon Donovan MLS MVP this year, but when he's on the field he's still one of the league's elite playmakers. After missing two games with a lower-body injury, he returned Saturday to provide the through-ball for Laryea's opener (below) and then made the run to give Achara a sure option for his tap-in six minutes later. He now has a goal and three assists in nine appearances this season.
Up Next
- TOR: Saturday, Aug. 14 vs. New England Revolution | 8 pm ET (MLS LIVE on ESPN+)
- NYC: Wednesday, Aug. 11 vs. Pumas UNAM | 8 pm ET (TUDN, ESPN+) | Leagues Cup Quarterfinals
