The second all-Canadian matchup of this Major League Soccer campaign will feature the Vancouver Whitecaps hosting Toronto on Sunday at BC Place Stadium.
TFC have dropped their last three fixtures domestically, losing 2-0 to FC Cincinnati on Wednesday, while the Caps are bottom of the league with only four points after eight fixtures.
Match preview
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It is safe to say that the start of the 2022 campaign in Vancouver has not been what anyone would have expected, given their form in the second half of last year.
With only a win and a draw thus far, it is the worst opening to a campaign for the Whitecaps since entering MLS back in 2011.
Vanni Sartini was able to work some magic a year ago when he became the new coach, and he will have a big challenge ahead of him to get this team back on track.
The best news might be that their following three MLS affairs will be on their home field, where they have been at their best, capturing points in 10 of their previous 12 regular-season encounters on that artificial turf.
Last year, their fortunes turned around near this point of the campaign, suffering only four defeats from week nine to 34 as some new acquisitions made a big difference.
They used their bye week to sign a new Designated Player from Ligue 2 in France, and they will hope that his top-flight experience in Europe can help reverse their fortunes.
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Toronto's solid bounce-back campaign has hit a snag, with the Reds dropping into ninth in the Eastern Conference after another defeat this week.
Their start against Cincinnati on Wednesday was about as bad as they could have imagined, conceding in the second minute of play and then being reduced to 10-men four minutes later.
Some timid defending on the opening goal against Cincy proved to be their demise as the back three were too slow in judging a long ball and got caught out of position.
In general, while disappointed with the result, Bob Bradley was pleased afterwards with how his team defended down a man for most of the encounter, although they are still making one or two mental errors which have cost them.
Throughout this campaign, they have struggled to contain opposing attacks in open-play, conceding nine goals over their three-match losing run and allowing 90 shots to this point of the season.
Given the young blood on this team, it should be no surprise that Bradley has his players often counter-pressing up the field as they are among the top teams in that department in 2022.
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Team News
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Vancouver officially signed Paraguayan midfielder Andres Cubas from Nimes Olympique in the second-tier of French football until June 2026.
The Caps could be without several regulars for this fixture, including Caio Alexandre (left foot injury), Ryan Gauld (MLS concussion protocol), Cristian Gutierrez (left calf tightness) and Leonard Owusu (right foot contusion).
Tristan Blackmon has been one of the few bright spots for the Caps so far this year, as he is one of only six players to have found the back of the net, while Brian White, who led the way with 12 goals a year ago, scored his first of the new campaign in a 2-1 defeat to CF Montreal.
Earlier this week, the club announced that they signed defender Luis Martins from Sporting Kansas City for the rest of the season with an option for 2023 and 2024.
Toronto will be missing midfielder Ralph Priso, who was red-carded after six minutes on Wednesday, Ifunanyachi Achara is questionable due to health and safety protocol, while Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Chris Mavinga, Noble Okello and Jacob Shaffelburg all have lower-body injuries.
Jesus Jimenez saw his three-match goalscoring streak end this week, though he is still tied for the league lead with Sebastian Driussi with seven goals for the season.
Bradley made three changes to his opening lineup in their return fixture versus Cincinnati as Lukas MacNaughton, Kadin Chung and Ralph Priso all earned starts, replacing Carlos Salcedo, Chris Mavinga and Jonathan Osorio.
Vancouver Whitecaps possible starting lineup:
Hasal; Martins, Nerwinski, Veselinovic, Blackmon; Raposo, Teibert, Cubas, Brown; Dajome, White
Toronto possible starting lineup:
Bono; O'Neill, Salcedo, Mavinga; Osorio, Bradley, Petrasso, Thompson; Akinola, Pozuelo; Jimenez
We say: Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 Toronto
It is no secret that the Caps have drastically underperformed to this point of the campaign, but they look much more dangerous on the artificial turf of BC Place.
We expect that the new faces in Vancouver will provide them with a much-needed boost against a TFC side who are coming off a short week and struggling to keep the ball out of their goal.
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