Following Wednesday night's 5-3 defeat at San Jose, D.C. United will relish the opportunity to return to play quickly with a Saturday night showdown against struggling Toronto FC. Here are a few things to look out for from the Black-and-Red's upcoming opponent.
IN ATTACK
Toronto certainly have some interestingoffensive pieces, but have so far lacked the continuity to make much danger outof it. Both Danny Koevermans andRyan Johnson can play as target forwards and - while Koevermans is better atlinking up with those around him - Johnson is by far the more mobile andtherefore dangerous of the pair. The 27-year-old is heavily left-footed, so D.C. will do well to denyJohnson the opportunity to play on his preferred foot.
While they lack any real sense of cohesion,Toronto's top six (they run a 4-3-3) can break teams down with their individualskill. Eric Avila played as theleft striker against RSL last week and turned in his strongest performance ofthe season. Opposite Avila, ReggiaLambe is an athletic handful and should test Daniel Woolard on a regularbasis. The speedy Joao Plateprovides a second wave to Toronto's attack, and if the diminutive Ecuadoranhits fifth gear he can be extremely difficult to stop.
Aron Winter's proposed style dictates that his teambuilds out of the back, and Toronto try to start their attacks fromdefense. The reality however, isthat few players besides Torsten Frings can consistently pass the ball out ofpressure. More often than not,long balls become the default for Toronto's back four.
IN DEFENSE
No team has allowed more goals against thisseason than Toronto and with D.C.'s recent form, that trend figures to continueon Saturday. Winter's defense hasseemed particularly vulnerable early in matches, as a lack of concentration hasput them at a deficit in each of their recent contests.
The concentration issues seem to extend toanother important part of defending, as Toronto has struggled mightily on setpieces. A lack of interest andorganization seemed to be the cause against Real Salt Lake last week, asToronto's defenders simply could not stay with the RSL attackers on dead ballsituations.
A pair of former Toronto FC men will take part in two of the morecritical match-ups come Saturday. Maicon Santos could be a nightmare for central defenders Miguel Acevaland Adrian Cann. Cann, who is justa year removed from an ACL injury, does not have the mobility to deny Santosservice. In the center of thepark, it is likely that neither Frings or Terry Dunfield have the physical qualitiesnecessary to slow down a red-hot Dwayne De Rosario.
