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New England Revolution Vs Toronto FC: 3 things to look for – The Pozuelo puzzle

By Marko Babic

TORONTO, ON - MARCH 29: Alejandro Pozuelo (10) of Toronto FC celebrates after scoring his first goal for Toronto FC during the second half of the MLS regular season match between Toronto FC and New York City FC on March 29, 2019, at BMO Field in Toronto, ON, Canada. (Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - MARCH 29: Alejandro Pozuelo (10) of Toronto FC celebrates after scoring his first goal for Toronto FC during the second half of the MLS regular season match between Toronto FC and New York City FC on March 29, 2019, at BMO Field in Toronto, ON, Canada. (Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – MARCH 29: Alejandro Pozuelo (10) of Toronto FC dribbles the ball past New York City FC players during the second half of the MLS regular season match between Toronto FC and New York City FC on March 29, 2019, at BMO Field in Toronto, ON, Canada. (Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

2. Pozuelo predicament

Toronto FC manager Greg Vanney controversially decided to leave playmaker Alejandro Pozuelo out of his starting line-up against the Montreal Impact in last weekend’s Canadian Classique.

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As it turned out, Vanney had two good reasons for doing so. Pozuelo was in need of some rest. The Spaniard played in 65 matches for Belgian club KRC Genk last season and has not had a proper offseason due to his move to MLS. But Vanney also omitted Pozuelo from his starting XI for strategic purposes. TFC’s boss wants his attackers to release the ball quickly and make incisive runs to create and expose gaps in the final third. According to Vanney, Pozuelo has a tendency to over-elaborate on the ball, thus slowing down Toronto FC’s attacking moves.

Pozuelo might find himself starting from the bench again against New England. In addition to his fatigue level and propensity to take too many touches at times, Pozuelo has failed to register a goal or assist in his last four appearances. As good as he is, Pozuelo’s selfishness can be detrimental than beneficial to the team when it comes without end product. Consequently, Vanney might opt to start the match with recent TAM signings Erickson Gallardo and Nicolas Benezet in a 4-3-3 as he did against Montreal in order to enhance their familiarity with their teammates and speed up his side’s offense.

Pozuelo has undoubtedly been one of Toronto FC’s most effective players this season, providing nine goals and nine assists in 23 appearances thus far. Nevertheless, it appears the Seville native will have to bend to Greg Vanney’s will if he is to start regularly over Gallardo and Benezet.

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