Toronto FC: Is Greg Vanney coaching for his job?
With the 401 Derby on the horizon and Toronto FC clinging onto the final playoff spot in the East, does Greg Vanney need to win in Montreal to keep his job?
19 matches into 2019, Toronto FC finds itself in a unique position. Currently hanging onto the seventh and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, they sit tied on points with a rejuvenated New England Revolution side.
Wait…tied with New England? Weren’t they in the basement about a month ago? They certainly were, but after moving on from Brad Friedel and hiring former USMNT boss Bruce Arena, the squad has jolted out of its slumber, and are right back in the playoff hunt.
The reason I divulged into that anecdote so early, breaking every journalistic rule in the book, is to prove what a simple managerial change can do for a team. Sometimes, the talent is there, it just needs a wake-up call. Dwayne Casey most likely could have guided the Raptors with Kawhi Leonard to the NBA Finals last season, but his firing got the attention of the team like nothing else could. Does Greg Vanney need to become a martyr for TFC to kick it up a notch? Or can he still command the locker room and take TFC on another playoff run? Let’s discuss.
Vanney’s problems all started after his biggest win. The argument can be made that for Vanney, TFC’s 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders in MLS Cup 2017 was the peak of the mountain, and on the other side was a sheer drop. In 2018, after the Reds’ love-it-or-hate-it CONCACAF Champions League run concluded, many believed that TFC had the roster to salvage the season, squeak into the playoffs and have another go at the championship.
Each week, you would think ‘this is the week they’re going to turn it around,’ and every week, you would be disappointed. Vanney even found himself on the hot seat at the end of the season, but an emphatic 4-1 win over eventual champions Atlanta United on the final day of the season helped buy him some more time. Whether it was fatigue from the extra travel and matches, or the size of the hole that was dug by the TFC reserves who filled in while the senior team was running through Liga MX’s best sides like a bull in a china shop, TFC didn’t get it done and fell victim to the championship hangover. Regardless, there were valid excuses then. There aren’t now.
Vanney got off to a hot start in 2019, going 3-1-0. He then suffered his first loss of the season against Seattle. During the cooler months, Alejandro Pozuelo fever was in high gear. Now, the MLS All-Star looks frustrated with the lack of service. The fact of the matter is, somewhere along the way, Vanney may have lost the locker room.
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Since Toronto FC’s 2-0 victory in Orlando on May 4, they have recorded one win in 11 matches. TFC fans can’t even lean on the match that the Reds won during this trying time period as a sign of good things to come. If Atlanta United’s Pity Martinez didn’t blast a last minute PK over the bar, that match would have finished 3-3. If that ball found twine, I may not be writing this article right now and Vanney may have already been served his walking papers.
After a quality result against D.C. United on the road, Vanney led his men into Los Angeles to take on Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the LA Galaxy. This is where his case for continued employment took another hit. From the get-go, it was dire. The Galaxy dominated every phase, winning 2-0, ruining Vanney’s return to his old stomping ground and reigniting rumours that his days at BMO Field are numbered. But, there is an opportunity on the horizon.
Saturday, July 13, Toronto FC will drive up the 401 and pay a visit to the Montreal Impact. Although Montreal sits on 30 points, good for third in the Eastern Conference, they have already lost nine games this season, one more than TFC. Also, as if I have to tell you, rivalry games just mean more. If Vanney is able to coax a result out of his charges Saturday night, it would go a long way to reassuring upper management that he is still the right man for the job; if TFC falter again, however, it might provoke Ali Curtis, Bill Manning and crew to go in a different direction.
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Saturday night’s 401 Derby will be pressure-packed for everyone involved, but no one man will be feeling the Montreal heat more than Greg Vanney.