Major League Soccer: John Herdman wants to connect and build trust with Toronto FC fans
Toronto FC’s dismal run of form continued on Wednesday night as they fell 2-1 at home to Orlando City.
It was their fifth defeat in a row, with three of the defeats suffered at home. They have not won a game since beating CF Montreal 5-2 on May 18.
“It’s the story of TFC this season. These 20-minute periods where for whatever reason whether we are playing home or away, there is just not that desire or intensity. It’s like the game gets too easy,” John Herdman told reporters after the game. “This has to be the turning point for the club tonight. I said to the players after the game, ‘It has to be the turning point,’ There’s going to be some hard conversations in the next few days starting with all of us looking at ourselves in the mirror for that 20-minute period. ‘What happened there and why does it happen? Why do we fall into that trap game after game?’ Herdman said.
Toronto fans have been desperate to see their team return to winning ways after the recent poor run of results. The team has now dropped to eighth in the Eastern Conference. They are just four points off the table, with six of the seven teams below them in the bottom half having at least one outstanding game.
With the dismal run, John Herdman was asked about what he believes would be a successful season for TFC from here.
“A successful season is about connecting with the fans and building trust, and we’re losing that. We are losing trust. The fans, to be fair, were class tonight. They saluted the effort they [had] seen in the last 30 minutes.
“They want a team that’s in the playoffs. They want a team that is competing for a trophy, a championship. [There are] 12 games left. The Canadian Championship is around the corner. We have the Leagues Cup. Still a lot to play for. Richie [Laryea] coming back and Oso [Jonathan Osorio] coming back at some point. A couple of injuries that will be returned soon and some summer signings, which we are going to have to make.” Herdman said.
TFC fans will hope to see an upturn of results in the coming days, with some difficult games away from home. They start with a trip to champions Colombus Crew on Saturday. They are back at home on July 13 to host Philadelphia Union.
