New York City FC made it well known that there were going to be changes this year from the team which disappointed in its expansion campaign in 2015. Patrick Vieira is now the man in charge, and already, City looks like a team which is set to press forward as often as it can. A week after netting four in a win over Chicago, NYCFC will play its first home match of the year against Toronto FC.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
New York City FC +130
Toronto FC +180
Draw +250
Over/Under 3 (under -115)
ODDS ANALYSIS
It's easy to overreact to just one match, but after watching City play in a seven-goal barnburner against the Fire, it's easy to imagine why the total in this game is so darn high. The number to beat is essentially a flat three, and it's difficult to see a situation in which the Sky Blues don't put at least one, if not two or more in the back of the net at home in this match.
City is the +130 moneyline favorite over its neighbors to the north, though TFC is only just behind at +180 on the moneyline.
KEY INJURIES
NYCFC isn't quite at full strength yet at the start of the season. Frank Lampard hasn't debuted for the team yet this year after suffering from a stomach ailment. Jack Harrison and Connor Brandt are out as well.
Jozy Altidore sat out of the opener with a hamstring injury, an issue which he'll test throughout the week for the Reds.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"I think we dug deep. Not everything was perfect, nor is it on day one, but the guys competed. They competed for 90 minutes. They covered each other. They scrapped things out and made plays when they needed to make plays defensively." – Toronto FC manager Greg Vanney on his team's gritty 2-0 win against the Red Bulls on Sunday
RECENT FORM
Both of these teams have only played one match, but already, we're getting a sense for who both are. New York City FC is clearly going to be an Eastern Conference contender this year if it can score the way it did in its 4-3 win over the Fire. Let's not forget though, that Chicago has been one of the lesser teams in the MLS for quite some time. It's always nice to get points on the road, but City has to prove it can play against one of the big boys here in the Bronx, too.
TFC was victorious in its first match of the year against the other New York side. The Red Bulls were by far the better of the two teams, but Sebastian Giovinco took the game over late on, scoring twice to lead the Reds to a major upset on Kickoff Sunday.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
TFC is going to have its say in the East this year, and we'd be surprised if it doesn't finish in the Top 4 to at least ensure a home playoff matchup. That said, the Reds have eight straight on the road to kick off this season, and if they play the same way against NYCFC that they played against the Red Bulls, they're going to end up getting beaten.
Vieira couldn't have asked for any more out of his team in the opening match of his tenure. City completed 79 percent of its passes and had possession for over 60 percent of the match. It took 20 shots, 10 of which hit the target, and it had a whopping 21 clearances on the other end of the pitch.
We suspect this is going to be an open game from start to finish as well, and though asking for seven goals again as NYCFC had in its first match is too much, this one will go past the total as well as we see it.
New York City FC 3, Toronto FC 1
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The fixture between New York City FC and Toronto FC will take place at 5:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 13, 2016 at Red Bull Arena. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2.
