Josh Sargent believes Toronto FC are in a better place mentally after a recent uptick in results and hopes they can continue their run against New York City FC in MLS.
Toronto in a 'better place mentally' after unbeaten streak, says Sargent
Toronto FC have regained their groove in MLS during a recent unbeaten streak, while New York City FC are struggling to find wins.
After a 12-match winless streak in the league, Toronto have now won two of their last three games and are, in fact, unbeaten in four (W2 D2).
It is a run that has stopped their slide down the Eastern Conference, and they are now 10th, level on points with Orlando City SC in ninth, behind them due to having won fewer games.
And Sargent says their recent streak has been good for the team's confidence as they look to continue their push for a playoff place.
"They're a quality team; they have good players," Sargent said of New York City FC.
"Last time we played them, it wasn't easy [the teams drew 1-1]. I think we're in a bit of a better place now mentally as a team.
"So hopefully, it'll be a good performance again, build off of last week and get a good result."
New York City are three points better off than Toronto, currently sitting seventh in the East, but they are winless in their last four outings.
They stopped a losing slide by earning a 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution last time out, with their last victory coming against the Chicago Fire (2-1).
While Pascal Jansen was disappointed not to get more against New England, he acknowledged a draw was better than nothing after back-to-back losses.
"Well, we're always looking for a win, that's obvious," Jansen said.
"The fact of the matter is we are coming off a few bad results. Played pretty decent in the majority of the games but didn't get the results that we were looking for.
"You come to a point where you have to settle for a draw. That is what we needed in order to get away from the performances that we've made so far."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Toronto FC – Derrick Etienne
Against Inter Miami, Derrick Etienne posted his first regular-season match for Toronto with multiple goal contributions (one goal, one assist).
It was the fifth such game of his MLS career, with the other four coming with Columbus Crew in the 2022 season.
New York City FC – Nicolas Fernandez
Against the Revolution, Nicolas Fernandez provided his sixth assist of the season, joining Maxi Moralez and Agustin Ojeda as one of three New York City players with six or more assists this season.
NYCFC joins FC Cincinnati and Miami (four) as the only teams with three or more such players.
MATCH PREDICTION: TORONTO FC WIN
New York are riding a seven-game unbeaten run (W6 D1) against Toronto across all competitions, which includes a win in both matches played in Canada during that stretch.
However, neither team has won three straight road matches in the fixture's history.
And Toronto picked up their fourth straight result (W2 D2) with their 2-1 win over Miami last weekend, with the club scoring multiple goals in each of their last three outings. The Reds have not scored two or more goals in four straight regular-season matches since a four-game streak in August-September 2022.
New York, meanwhile, have scored 22 of their 35 MLS goals in the first half (62.9%) of matches this season, the highest percentage by any MLS team. Nine of the club's 10 goals since the World Cup break have come before halftime, tied with Charlotte FC for the most in MLS in that time.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Toronto FC – 39.3%
Draw – 24.7%
New York City FC – 36%
