TORONTO (AP) — A brawl broke out after the final whistle Saturday night, but New York City FC won 3-2 over Toronto FC, with rookies Malachi Jones and Andres Perea in the second half. Matt Freese defended the goal with nine saves. .
After the match, a scuffle ensued involving players from both teams. Toronto goaltender Sean Johnson, a former New York player, was in the middle of it all, seemingly trying to play peacekeeper.
The bad blood between the two teams dates back to March 16, when New York won 2-1, with an altercation in the tunnel at halftime at Yankee Stadium.
New York's first-year coach Nick Cushing downplayed the incident when asked about it before the rematch. It was two teams competing for three points. ”
Toronto's first-year coach John Herdman and captain Jonathan Osorio had very different memories.
Osorio said Cushing crossed the line in a conversation in the tunnel that then turned physical.
“Then I heard that the coach and three players cornered our 19-year-old (player) by himself. That's when the problem happens,” Osorio said. “And I think that kind of carried over into this game, probably from their side as well. … We just let them know that we haven't forgotten about it.”
Osorio did not reveal the identity of the 19-year-old, but his age matches that of J'Quir Marshall-Latti, who scored in the seventh minute at Yankee Stadium. Hardman said the player “said he was cornered and punched in the face.”
Hardman said the March game was not affected because “there were no cameras running in certain areas of the stadium”, a comment that made his captain laugh.
Cushing denied hitting the Toronto player.
“As a head coach, I can honestly say this: In my 348 games, I've never laid a finger on a player,” he said after Saturday's game, when informed of Toronto's accusations.
But Mr. Hardman also criticized Mr. Cushing.
“You don't want to see that in soccer, but soccer is a passionate group,” Hardman said. “There's no doubt that the bad blood started flowing from the first game the head coach was involved.”
Santiago Rodriguez gave New York City (5-5-2) a 1-0 lead with a penalty kick in the 25th minute. Rodriguez scored his fourth goal of the season, sending a right-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the net after a handball foul on Toronto midfielder Matty Longstaff.
NYCFC entered halftime with a 2-0 lead on Jones' first career goal. Jones, a 20-year-old forward, scored in the 44th minute, and fellow rookie Hannes Wolff recorded an assist.
Toronto (6-5-1) pulled within one point early in the second half on Federico Bernardeschi's unassisted goal in the 55th minute. Bernardeschi scored his first two goals of the season in a 3-1 win over FC Dallas last week.
NYCFC regained a two-goal lead in the 78th minute with Perea's first goal of the season. Wolf and rookie Agustin Ojeda had assists. It was Ojeda's first assist in his career and Wolfe's third assist in his first season.
Toronto came close to scoring again in the 89th minute when defender Raul Petretta found the back of the net for the first time in his career on an assist from Longstaff.
Bernardeschi was given a second yellow card two minutes after Petretta's goal, forcing Toronto to be man-down until stoppage time. Bernardeschi and Kevin Long will miss the next game – we can’t wait to see how many yellow cards accumulate.
Freeze was just one save away from tying his career high.
Johnson led Toronto by one stroke.
Toronto's winning streak ended at three. Toronto went from being the last team in the league last season to third place in the Eastern Conference at the start of the day. The club finished the 2023 season with 22 points and have already picked up 19 points this season.
Lorenzo Insigne will appear in a game in Toronto for the first time since March 23rd. Insigne, who had not played since injuring his thigh in the 2-0 win over Atlanta United, came on as a substitute for Derrick Etienne Jr. in the 76th minute but missed his only shot. .
In the first matchup, NYCFC defeated Toronto, giving Cushing his first win and Hardman his first loss.
NYCFC leads the series with 11 wins, 9 losses, and 7 losses. NYCFC won the remaining four games of this matchup by a combined score of 13-3.
New York City continues its road trip to take on the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday. Toronto will be on the road to play Nashville SC on Wednesday.
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