Photo: Toronto forward Jeremy Brockie out to prove Reds can do better than it did on Saturday.
Carson, CA - On Saturday, Toronto FC was kept off the score sheet by an experienced Kansas City side now sitting first in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference. The Reds visit a team at the other end of the Western Conference table at midweek, yet there too lies a challenge in the form of a veteran defender likely set to make his debut on Wednesday night for Chivas USA (#TFClive on TSN 2 at 10:30 p.m. ET).
RELATED: Match preview
U.S. international centre back Carlos Bocanegra has reportedly received his international transfer certificate and should be in the lineup to give head coach Jose Luis Real’s squad a boost. Chivas has been riding an agonizing 14-game winless streak where late goals have cost them dearly, a situation that will sound frustratingly familiar to TFC fans.
For a few years Bocanegra had been rumoured for an MLS return, moving from Chicago Fire in 2004 to become a regular on teams in England, France, Scotland and Spain. Therefore, Wednesday’s match will come with some anticipation for Chivas fans and neutral onlookers alike.
“I expect to come in and do my job,” Bocanegra told MLSsoccer.com this week. “I want to help this team move forward…that’s the most important thing.”
While he is focused on improving the plight of the Goats, the early spotlight will be on Bocanegra’s fitness, to which he added “I need to get some games under my belt so I can catch up to the group."
Bocanegra and his fellow defenders are likely to see plenty of Toronto attackers Robert Earnshaw and Jeremy Brockie. Both players were adamant after the 3-0 loss to Kansas City that Toronto has to bounce back in a big way against Chivas.
“What we have to do is get back to it, think about what’s happened (Saturday)…and make it right on Wednesday,” Earnshaw said to Toronto FC TV. “In soccer the best thing is as soon as you get a bad loss or get beat, you get another game straight away. So, Wednesday night is obviously going to be a huge game for us.”
His forward partner Brockie added “when you don’t turn up, results like (in Kansas City) happen. Having a game so quickly after a disappointing result, we can prove that it was just a one off performance and we can do better.”
