Toronto FC coach Chris Armas said from the get-go that his team would make life difficult for adversaries and he would unleash TFC’s young talent.
The MLS side delivered on both counts Wednesday, beating Club Leon 2-1 on the night and 3-2 on aggregate to oust the Mexicans from the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League.
Toronto did it with an injury list as long as Armas’ arm, having survived a COVID-19 outbreak during training camp back home and yet another move south of the border due to pandemic-related travel restrictions.
Second-half goals by Patrick Mullins and Justin Morrow sparked the victory in a game that saw TFC’s youngsters show they are indeed ready for their close-up.
An unmarked Fernando Navarro got a goal back for Leon in the 80th minute, knocking a Yairo Moreno cross past goalkeeper Alex Bono to set the stage for a furious finale.
One more away goal and Leon would have capped a remarkable comeback.
But Toronto held on, with Bono making a 90th-minute save on substitute Emmanuel Gigliotti’s low shot. Five minutes of tense extra time ensued.
It was the first TFC victory for Armas in a competitive match — a famous victory given the circumstances.
“The locker-room right now is electric,” said Armas, who took over in January for the departed Greg Vanney.
“If you were inside the locker-room you’d see all the veteran players — (Alejandro) Pozuelo, Jozy (Altidore) rallying around the young guys that stepped up in a big way tonight,” he added.
Pozuelo and Altidore, Toronto’s designated players, were just two of TFC’s sidelined walking wounded.
The degree of difficulty grows for Toronto, which moves on to play Mexico’s Cruz Azul in the quarter-finals of CONCACAF’s flagship club competition. The Liga MX leader thumped Haiti’s Arcahaie FC 8-0 Tuesday in Mexico City after the first leg concluded 0-0.
Both Toronto and Leon exited in the round of 16 in their most recent Champions League participation. TFC was beaten by Panama’s Club Atletico Independiente in 2019 while Leon was eliminated by Los Angeles FC in 2020.
Toronto reached the tournament final in 2018, losing to Guadalajara in a penalty shootout. The Champions League winner represents CONCACAF at the FIFA Club World Cup.
