John Herdman wants to see the real Toronto FC take to the pitch when they welcome Nashville to the BMO Field on Wednesday.
The Reds were comfortably beaten by Chicago Fire last time out, continuing their recent poor form which has seen them lose three of their last four games in front of their home supporters.
Toronto sit seventh in the Eastern Conference, three points behind Colombus Crew, who have the advantage of three games in hand in the coming weeks.
Herdman was animated following the full-time whistle last Saturday, and is looking for his side to be harder to beat as he looks for his side to return to the one he has managed for much of the season.
"While there was effort there and opportunities, we're too soft. We gave goals away tonight," said Herdman. "We've discussed this. We've got to be harder to beat, at home there's got to be an identity that fans can be proud of. That's the first night in my time where I've really shared the disappointment of the fans.”
"I always look for that silver lining, whether it's the effort, being tough, creating opportunities, but tonight we were flat," Herdman levelled. "It's very raw at the moment. We've had some conversations in the dressing room, but we can’t see that again."
"We've got three days to turn this around," he added. "And as I've said to them, 'The real us has to show on Wednesday.' The real us, because that wasn’t us."
Meanwhile, Nashville have the opportunity to close the gap to their opponents should they emerge victorious away from home, something they have been incredibly successful at in recent weeks.
Their draw against New York Red Bulls last time out saw them remain unbeaten in their last three games away from Geodis Park but they will be hoping for a better attacking display from their plethora of forward options.
Nashville attempted six shots against the Red Bulls, failing to register one on target, with those in Rumba Munthali’s ranks not having more than one shot during proceedings.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Toronto FC – Lorenzo Insinge
The experienced Italian will once again be pivotal in Toronto's forward line as the 33-year-old looks to add to his goal against Chicago Fire last time out.
Since arriving in the MLS in 2022, Insigne has scored twice against Nashville, the joint-most he has scored against any other side he has faced.
Nashville – Hany Mukhtar
Hany Mukhtar has once again been in fine form for Nashville, and he will once again look to be the creative spark for the visitors.
The German has notched two assists and a goal in his last three MLS appearances.
MATCH PREDICTION: NASHVILLE WIN
Nashville come into the encounter as favourites and will be hoping to continue their impressive form away from home, having gone unbeaten in their last three away matches (W1 D2), keeping clean sheets in all of those games.
This is the second time Nashville have kept clean sheets in three straight away games, last doing so in 2021, and they look set to continue that record this time around.
Meanwhile, Toronto have won just one of their last seven league games following a three-game unbeaten run, losing three of their four home fixtures in that time.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Toronto – 30.1%
Draw – 24.9%
Nashville – 45%
John Herdman has said that Toronto must go back to basics to halt their six-game winless run ahead of their trip to Atlanta United on Sunday.
The Reds fell to their third consecutive MLS defeat away to the New York Red Bulls last time out and have scored just four goals in their last five league fixtures.
Toronto enter the encounter in eighth place ahead of their trip to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, three points ahead of their opponents in the Eastern Conference.
Herdman's side Toronto FC has won only two of their last 30 away matches (D7 L21) dating back to September 2022, but the 48-year-old is keen to put an end to that run.
“We'll get back,” said Herdman. “As I've said to the lads, they just have to go to the next task.”
“That's all we can control at the moment,” he closed. “Just next task, back to basics, and then looking at evolving tactically for a tough match at Atlanta.”
For Atlanta, they are now unbeaten in their last three MLS games, having come from a goal down to draw with St. Louis City last Sunday.
Rob Valentino's side, however, have struggled at home in recent weeks and are without a win in seven (D2 L5), leaving them in ninth heading into the encounter.
The Five Stripes enter a busy period of the campaign, playing six matches in 18 days, starting by welcoming Toronto to Georgia, something which goalkeeper Brad Guzan knows about during his time in the Premier League.
“One of the most important things is being able to rest and recover mentally and physically," said Guzan.
So that when you step on the field for the next game, you are ready to go."
Atlanta – Daniel Rios
Having been an unused sub in consecutive games against Inter Miami and Charlotte, Rios has returned to the starting line-up with the desired impact, scoring two goals in his last three games.
The Mexican's equaliser against St. Louis City on Saturday came from a free-kick, the first non-penalty set-piece goal Atlanta have scored all season.
Toronto – Federico Bernardeschi
Should Toronto get back to winning ways, the experience and skill of Bernardeschi will be key, having provided 12 goal involvements from 17 MLS appearances this season.
The Italian has four goals in his last five league games, and has previously scored twice against the Five Stripes.
MATCH PREDICTION: ATLANTA WIN
Atlanta will be confident of maintaining their impressive record against their opponents at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium this weekend, having gone seven games without defeat (W3 D4).
But the Five Stripes will be wary of their recent home record. Valentino’s side are winless in seven straight games in front of their home supporters, (D2 L5) having not recorded a home win since March 31.
Despite their 3-0 defeat to the New York Red Bulls last time out, Toronto can take confidence from the defeat. It marked just the fifth time all season that Toronto failed to find the net. Last season, Toronto was shut out an MLS-record 18 times as the Reds already have more goals this season (28) than they managed in 2023 (26).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Atlanta – 60.6%%
Draw – 20.7%%
Toronto – 18.7%
New York City FC v Orlando City: Attacking mentality must return to stop winless run, says Cushing
New York City FC head coach Nick Cushing insisted that his side must play with an attacking intensity if they are to return to winning ways against Orlando City on Saturday.
The Pigeons are winless in their last three games following their 1-0 defeat to Nashville last time out having lost once in their previous 11 MLS fixtures, dating back to March.
NYCFC’s subsequent slump has seen them drop to sixth in the Eastern Conference table, a point behind Columbus Crew who have two games in hand.
Cushing is keen to see his side climb back up the table and believes a return to their attacking mentality is the key to achieving success.
“We have to brush it off,” Cushing said of the recent defeats. “I think it's been a really good opportunity.
"We’re frustrated with the results and 100% not content, but it's been a good opportunity to really feel and see when we're good and when we win, and also when we're not so good and why we don't win.
“I think ultimately, the two things we've been good at has been the intensity that we play at and the amount of attacking football and chances that we've created.
“The intensity comes from our ability to attack games. That’s a really quick fix for us. We've got to work hard, we've got to apply ourselves properly, and we've got to play with ambition and a real attacking mentality."
Meanwhile, Orlando earned their first triumph in six matches as they edged a six-goal thriller against Chicago Fire at the Inter&Co Stadium, despite leading 3-0 at the break.
The result saw them go level on points with Atlanta United and head into the encounter in 10th place in the table, hoping to produce back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
Head coach Oscar Pareja is hopeful the result will instil confidence into his players in their quest to climb up the Eastern Conference table.
“Winning at home in front of our fans, despite these difficult moments, they came and supported us, and I want to express our gratitude to them and that energy they brought to us in a game that we needed an extra push from us after a difficult week.
“But we had a lot of positive things: we scored four goals, we started seeing the individuals improve their performances, the collective obviously looks much better.
“Hopefully we can continue (winning) because we need to find our way to turn things around.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
NYCFC – Maximiliano Moralez
Despite missing much of the season through injury, Moralez returned to the side earlier this month and has two assists in his last four matches.
The Argentine will be hopeful of continuing his excellent record against the Lions, having scored five of his 26 career regular-season goals against Saturday’s opponents. He hasn’t scored more than three against any other MLS opposition.
Orlando – Facundo Torres
Torres scored twice in Orlando’s win over Chicago and has notched three goals and one assist in his last two MLS games.
The Uruguyan has recorded multiple goal contributions 10 times with Orlando, equalling Kaká for the most such performances in the club’s history.
MATCH PREDICTION: NYCFC WIN
New York City FC are unbeaten in their last six home matches against Orlando (W5 D1) including winning the last three in a row. Orlando’s last win at NYCFC was a 2-1 victory back in April 2017.
But NYCFC come into the game off the back of three consecutive losses, having lost one of their previous MLS fixtures (W8 D2). The Pigeons have not lost four games in a row since the start of the 2020 season.
Orlando City will be hopeful of prolonging Cushing’s side’s troubles, having ended a winless run of their own against Chicago Fire last time out. They had been five games without a victory (D2 L3) and will be hoping to win consecutive matches in all competitions for the first time this season.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
NYCFC – 44.3%
Draw – 26.8%
Orlando – 28.8%
Paraguay v Brazil: Dorival approach will work for Selecao, believes Arana
Dorival Junior will get things right despite Brazil's underwhelming start to the Copa America, believes left-back Guilherme Arana, as the Selecao prepare to face Paraguay.
Brazil were held to a frustrating goalless draw by Costa Rica in their opening Group D match on Monday, losing ground on Colombia, who started with a win over Paraguay.
While Dorival praised aspects of his team's performance in that match, he acknowledged more will be needed in the final third if the Selecao are to challenge for a 10th South American crown.
Atletico Mineiro full-back Arana, who played the full 90 minutes last time out, praised Dorival's approach as he opened up on the coach's reaction to the result.
"As soon as we entered the dressing room, he praised our pressing after we lost the ball, it was very good, we didn't concede anything defensively," Arana said.
"He encouraged us, gave us morale. I think that's the thought not only of him but of all the players.
"The result of the debut was bad, but we still have two games to go. In other words, two great opportunities. That's the thinking.
"Of course it's a new job, Dorival arrived recently, the players are new too, but we're focused together with him.
"Dorival knows what he's doing, he's an excellent coach and he's going to help us a lot."
Paraguay were beaten 2-1 by Colombia in their opener, leaving them likely needing to cause an upset to have any chance of reaching the quarter-finals.
Head coach Daniel Garnero believes there were plenty of positives to take from that match, saying: "We have a clear idea of our gameplan and the feeling is that we competed at all times.
"I think it was an even game, we did not manage to bring home the points but we tried to match our opponents.
"With Argentina [and Colombia], these were the two teams that arrived at the Copa with great superiority.
"There were many positive elements and when we take stock of this match we'll see this."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Paraguay – Julio Enciso
Enciso attempted 11 dribbles against Colombia in Paraguay's Copa America opener, the joint-most of any player in the opening round of fixtures at the tournament (tied with Richard Ríos of Colombia).
The Brighton and Hove Albion player completed six of them, the second-highest figure in the first round, behind Rios' eight.
By netting his nation's consolation goal, he became the second-youngest player to score for Paraguay at a major tournament this century (20 years, 153 days), after Ernesto Cristaldo versus Chile at the 2004 Copa America (20 years, 117 days).
Brazil – Vinicius Junior
Brazil failed to make their superiority count against Costa Rica, making more passes (695) than any other team across the first matchday of the competition, but only registered three shots on target from the 19 they attempted.
Vinicius was withdrawn for future Real Madrid team-mate Endrick 71 minutes in after failing to register a single shot, though he did create a game-high three chances.
He has been substituted in each of the Selecao's last six competitive matches, versus Costa Rica and in three World Cup qualifiers last year, as well as their last two fixtures at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
After scoring 24 goals and adding nine assists for Los Blancos last season, Vinicius will be expecting to produce a better display on Friday.
MATCH PREDICTION: BRAZIL WIN
Brazil recorded 49 entries into Costa Rica's penalty area on matchday one, their joint-highest figure in a Copa America match since such data began being recorded in 2011 (also versus Paraguay in 2019).
More penetration – and better finishing – will be required next time out.
Paraguay have not lost any of their last five matches against Brazil at the Copa America, recording one win and four draws.
This equals the second-longest unbeaten streak against Brazil in the history of the tournament, behind Argentina's eight-match run between 1923 and 1946 (seven wins, one draw), tied with Paraguay's own streak between 1963 and 1983 (two wins, three draws).
However, Paraguay have only won one of their last six games in all competitions (two draws, three defeats), so Dorvial's team go into the match as strong favourites.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Paraguay – 13.4%
Brazil – 69.6%
Draw – 17%
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