NEW YORK — Toronto FC, in its first outing since buying out the contacts of Italian designated players Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi, was beaten 3-1 by New York City FC in the lone MLS game Thursday.
Hannes Wolf, Mitja Ilenic and Kevin O'Toole scored for New York (9-7-4). Eight of NYCFC's wins have come at home (8-3-0).
The win moved NYCFC up three places to sixth spot in the Eastern Conference, seven places and 14 points above Toronto.
While Toronto (4-11-5) was competitive at Yankee Stadium, its offence was stagnant in the first half. There wasn't much offence until Ola Brynhildsen and Theo Corbeanu both tested New York 'keeper Tomas Romero around the hour mark.
At the other end it too often allowed NYCFC attackers too clear a path to TFC's goal.
"(It's) disappointing because I thought we more than started well," said Toronto coach Robin Fraser. "I thought for a lot of the game we were really good. And really solid.
"Mistakes. Mistakes did us in. We're disappointed in the result, partially because we know how badly we need results. But really I'm proud of the effort. The effort was great. There were a couple of mental lapses that ended up costing us too much. But so many guys played so well and put in a real honest shift. It's just disappointing when you do so many things well and you still come out on this side of it."
New York outshot Toronto 10-8 (5-2 in shots on target).
Toronto started brightly but found itself trailing 1-0 in the 20th minute when, after a NYCFC free kick, a cross found Wolf and the Austrian midfielder's stylish left-footed volley went in after beating Sean Johnson and hitting both goalposts.
It was the ninth goal of the season for Wolf and his sixth in his last six games.
Ilenic doubled the lead in the 49th minute, sticking out a leg to deflect in Agustín Ojeda's cross after the Argentine winger had been allowed to race towards the Toronto goal without challenge. Ilenic, a 20-year-old Slovenian international fullback, marked his second goal of the season with Cristiano Ronaldo's trademark celebration.
Toronto cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 70th minute via an own goal. Corbeanu beat a defender down the right flank, reached the byline and sent in a cross that deflected off defender Justin Haak and then Romero into the goal.
O'Toole restored New York's two-goal lead in the 74th minute. Kosi Thompson was dispossessed and Maxi Moralez passed the ball to Wolf, who found O'Toole unchecked in the Toronto penalty box. The substitute dribbled towards goal and beat Johnson with a low shot.
Fraser went with the same lineup that beat visiting Portland 3-0 Saturday in what was TFC's best performance of the season.
Toronto moved the ball around but showed little in front of goal in a first half that saw both teams attempt four shots with NYCFC holding a 2-0 edge in shots on target.
TFC defender Kevin Long was shown a yellow card in the second minute with midfielder Matty Longstaff following him into referee Fotis Bazakos' book in the 20th minute.
Defender Richie Laryea, back from Gold Cup duty with Canada, came on in the 57th minute. Maxime Dominguez became the third TFC player to be cautioned after a tussle with Ilenic in the 67th minute.
Thompson made his 100th appearance for TFC in all competitions.
New York forward Alonso Martínez returned from international duty with Costa Rica but goalkeeper Matt Freese, the hero of the American penalty shootout quarterfinal win over Honduras, remains at the Gold Cup.
Romero, an El Salvador international and former Toronto player, started in goal for NYCFC. Canadian Greg Ranjitsingh, his backup, also had a stint with TFC.
Toronto defenders Nicksoen Gomis, Zane Monlouis and Henry Wingo remain long-term casualties. Captain Jonathan Osorio was also out, recovering from a lower-body injury suffered with Canada, while midfielder Deybi Flores played in Honduras's 2-1 loss to Mexico in the Gold Cup semifinal Wednesday in California.
Toronto signed TFC 2 defender Reid Fisher and midfielder Malik Henry to MLS short-term agreements for the game. Originally drafted by CF Montreal in the second round (39th overall) in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft, Henry's promotion cost Toronto a third-round draft pick in 2026 with US$75,000 in conditional general allocation money, given Montreal had retained his MLS priority rights.
Henry came on in the 70th minute, picking up a yellow soon after.
Toronto has had little success at NYCFC with a 1-6-5 regular-season record there. The lone win was a 1-0 decision on Sept. 23, 2020, thanks to a 90th-minute Alejandro Pozuelo penalty in a game played at Red Bull Arena.
TFC has won two playoff games at NYCFC.
Up next, Toronto hosts Atlanta United on July 12 while NYCFC visits Charlotte FC.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2025
The Canadian Press
