Realistic expectations were never all that high for New York City FC this season. If the team snuck into the back of the playoffs, it would probably have been considered a triumphant season. However, if that goal is even going to be remotely in focus during the run-in this year, a win over Toronto FC on Wednesday night might be a prerequisite.
ODDS ANALYSIS
There are still no odds posted for this match as of Sunday night, but we can imagine that NYCFC is going to be favored by a slender margin. Home field advantage has proven to be crucial in this league this year no matter who the club is, it's just a matter of the varying degrees.
KEY INJURIES
The Reds still have problems at the back. They're getting closer to having back Clement Simonin, Nick Hagglund and Damien Perquis, but these men probably aren't quite there yet. Furthermore, Sebastian Giovinco is still out with an adductor injury.
NYCFC is still playing without two of its midfielders, Javier Calle and Mehdi Ballouchy.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"It was an important game for us to level the field with New England and keep ourselves in touch with that group of teams in front of us. This one slipped away. We can't let that happen again on Wednesday." – Toronto FC manager Greg Vanney on a stunning loss at home against New England, a match which probably should have been won
RECENT FORM
City has been in terrible form of late, and that's why it is sitting four points and three games in hand away from that last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. This most recent slide has consisted of losses to FC Dallas, Columbus and Los Angeles, and it has officially been over a month since the club has won a match.
The Reds fired off 21 shots against New England over the weekend, yet they were still nowhere near good enough in a 3-1 loss. That marked two straight defeats for TFC, though if there is any good news, it's the fact that streaks tend to end in twos the way things are going. Toronto won two straight before losing two straight, and prior to that, the team had lost two in a row again. If the trend continues, the Reds will be happy campers leaving the Big Apple on Thursday morning to get back to training in the Great White North.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
There will be plenty of big names on both sides of this match, but we're not really sure what it all means. Jozy Altidore has been underachieving for most of the season for TFC, while Michael Bradley is coming off of an atrocious match against New England in which he couldn't finish anything and turned the ball over far too many teams.
Meanwhile for New York City, Andrea Pirlo, David Villa and Frank Lampard are only creating so much. What we're finding out about this side is that its defense really isn't worth a lick quite yet, and its goaltending situation has been a nightmare all season long.
Look for this to be another poor outing at the back for the Sky Blues. They might sneak a point out of this game as Toronto could still be reeling from blowing that match at home against the Revs on Sunday, but asking anything more than that from the hosts would be too much.
New York City FC 2, Toronto FC 2
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