Harrison, N.J. — Toronto FC has its first-ever Leagues Cup win. And John Herdman’s side has given itself a chance to move on to the knockout round of the 47-team tournament after edging the New York Red Bulls 5-4 in a penalty shootout Saturday.
Toronto goalkeeper Sean Johnson made two saves in the shootout, including one with the game on the line, to secure the win after the contest at Red Bull Arena finished in a scoreless draw after regulation time.
The Red Bulls host Pachuca on Tuesday with the storied Mexican side visiting Toronto on Aug. 4 to complete East Group 6 play.
“Having Pachuca at home gives us, I think, that little bit of an advantage,” coach Herdman said. “We know they’re a top team. We saw what they did to Columbus and there aren’t many teams that do that.
“This is going to be a tough test. But we’re taking ourselves into that game with the best opportunity to progress.”
Pachuca won the CONCACAF Champions Cup last month, blanking MLS champion Columbus 3-0 in the final.
The Leagues Cup, now in its fourth edition, has grown to involve all 29 teams from MLS and all 18 from Liga MX.
Liga MX champion Club America and Columbus have been given byes to the knockout round of 32. The other 45 entries have been divided into 15 groups of three teams.
The top two from each group advance to the round of 32.
Toronto failed to survive the group stage of last year’s tournament, losing 5-0 to New York City FC at Red Bull Arena and 1-0 to Mexico’s Atlas at BMO Field, with the NYCFC loss one of the low points in a dismal 2023 season.
The Red Bulls reached the round of 16 where they lost to the Philadelphia Union in a penalty shootout.
Toronto earned two points for Saturday’s shootout win while the Red Bulls picked up one. A regulation win is worth three points in the tournament.
“We had chances in the 90 minutes to win,” said Red Bulls coach Sandro Schwarz, who also believes his team can still advance.
“We have everything in our hand,” said the German native.
Under Leagues Cup rules, there was no extra time before the penalty shootout.
Matty Longstaff, Kosi Thompson, Derrick Etienne Jr., Jonathan Osorio and Shane O’Neill scored penalties for Toronto.
Red Bulls goalkeeper Ryan Meara, normally the backup to Paraguayan international Carlos Coronel, stopped Jahkeele Marshal-Rutty on TFC’s sixth attempt.
That set up Daniel Edelman for the possible winner, but he skied his shot. O’Neill then gave Toronto a 5-4 lead and Johnson stopped Andres Reyes for the shootout win.
Lorenzo Insigne, aiming for the top corner, hit the crossbar with Toronto’s first penalty attempt.
Lewis Morgan, Dante Vanzeir, Wiki Carmona and Elias Manoel converted their spot kicks for the Red Bulls. Johnson stopped Cory Burke with the game on the line at 4-4.
New York outshot Toronto 11-9 (4-4 in shots on target).
Toronto, which opened with a four-man backline, had more of the ball in a less-than-enthralling first half and managed the lone shot on goal before the break. The game opened up in the second half with both goalkeepers tested.
Johnson preserved the tie with a fine save in the 84th minute, acrobatically pushing a header from Vanzeir over the crossbar. And an unmarked Vanzeir headed just wide in the 89th minute.
Meara stopped Insigne’s low shot from outside the penalty box in the dying seconds of stoppage time. The Italian, who had a quiet night, had a second chance but sent his shot wide.
Herdman fielded arguably his strongest lineup with Kevin Long, Deybi Flores and Etienne coming on for O’Neill, Longstaff and Thompson.
The Red Bulls gave 16-year-old forward Julian Hall his first start.
Toronto (9-14-3) currently sits eighth in the MLS’s Eastern Conference, 11 points behind the fourth-place Red Bulls (10-4-11), who have a game in hand.
Herdman has had more weapons at his disposal in recent weeks with players returning from injury and international duty. Toronto came into Saturday’s game having won two of its last three, including a 1-0 victory at CF Montreal last time out, after a seven-game losing streak across all competitions.
Coming off a 3-1 win over second-place FC Cincinnati, the Red Bulls were unbeaten in their previous eight games (2-0-6). The New Yorkers were also unbeaten in 15 straight home games.
The Leagues Cup, which runs through Aug. 25, began in 2019 and also took place in 2020 and 2023.
Mexico’s Cruz Azul and Leon won in 2019 and ’20, respectively, while Lionel Messi and Inter Miami hoisted the trophy last year. The top three teams qualify for the CONCACAF Champions Cup with the winner earning a bye to the round of 16 of the elite club championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean.
Canadian MLS teams did not take part until 2023, with only the Vancouver Whitecaps surviving the group stage.
