Toronto FC: Surviving the Sebastian Giovinco mess

Toronto FC President Bill Manning has admitted that the club is not close in talks with Sebastian Giovinco. How can the Reds look to survive this mess?

Toronto FC knew their window was closing. All three of their Designated Players would turn 30 years old or more this season, their highly-paid squad was unsustainable, and there was a lack of alternative options as proven by their fall from grace in 2018.

The 2018 season was meant to be more of the same. Toronto FC of 2017 might well be the greatest MLS team of all time. Prior to the 2018 season, it was said that they had gotten even better. How wrong everyone was. Toronto proceeded to finish outside of the playoffs.

Nevertheless, most still expected Toronto’s window to extend to 2019. Yes, many of their stars were ageing, but they still had plenty left in the tank. That is, if they were in Ontario to prove as much.

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Victor Vazquez has already left, seeking one last payday in the Middle East, not that I can blame him now that he is 32. And there have been strong murmurings that Sebastian Giovinco, one of the other pillars on which this Toronto dynasty (is it actually a dynasty?) has been built.

Indeed, this week, club president Bill Manning had this to say on Giovinco’s highly uncertain future:

"“We want him with us. We have had talks with his agent and they are not progressing as we would like. We did receive an offer last week that we shut down. Sebastian would like us to stay on the same level and make a long commitment to us. Last year, we were $9 million higher than any other team and we didn’t make the playoffs <…> Our offer to him would still make him one of the top six or seven earners in the league.”"

That is the statement of a man who is highly unsure of whether Giovinco will remain a Red. In fact, I believe that it is preparation for the inevitable disappointment that comes if he does indeed depart this offseason. Manning is trying to say something along the lines of ‘we did everything we could’, just in case this all turns sour.

But if this does turn sour, then serious questions have to be asked of Toronto’s capability to challenge. This is still a very capable roster, of course. And there are other options in players like Jonathan Osorio. But Giovinco was more than just a talented attacker for TFC. He was directly involved in a ridiculous 65% of TFC’s goals in his 2015 MVP season. And last year, even when dealing with injuries, he still scored 13 goals and totalled 15 assists in 28 games.

Can Toronto actually survive this Giovinco mess — that is precisely what it is. There is a mysterious knee injury, a ghost trip to Qatar and a new contract all involved — and look to compete next season if the Italian is not on the roster? Even the substantial outlay to keep him, a player of his unique calibre is worth it? And surely TFC do not have the time or the money to find a suitable replacement?

For Toronto FC, the championship window is narrowing. And if Giovinco leaves, it might well have vanished altogether.