Toronto FC (11W-16L-3T, 36 points) were defeated 2-0 by the Colorado Rapids (14W-10L-5T, 47 points) at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on Saturday night.

First Half:

Playing their third game in eight nights and with a domestic cup final on the horizon in four nights’ time, TFC Head Coach John Herdman made eight changes from his Reds side that started against Columbus Crew in midweek MLS action. Shane O’Neill, Aimé Mabika, Kobe Franklin, Brandon Servania, Deybi Flores, Kosi Thompson, Tyrese Spicer and Prince Owusu entered the starting eleven with Richie Laryea, Raoul Petretta, Federico Bernardeschi, Alonso Coello, Matty Longstaff, Jonathan Osorio, Lorenzo Insigne and Deandre Kerr making way.

The evening’s first goalscoring opportunity fell to the hosts when Rafael Navarro ran onto Cole Bassett’s pass behind the Toronto back-line and saw his clever lob over goalkeeper Sean Johnson cleared off the line by Colorado-raised Shane O’Neill in the sixth minute.

Moments later, the Reds responded with a pair of early opportunities of their own down the other end, with Aimé Mabika forcing Colorado’s Zack Steffen into his first save of the night in the 10th minute before Prince Owusu was unable to find the target from Brandon Servania’s 12th minute delivery into the penalty area.

Midway into the half, Sean Johnson, wearing the captain’s armband for the night, showcased his shot-stopping ability as the Lilburn, Georgia native was alert and on-hand to make an important double save denying Cole Bassett and Djordje Mihailovic the opener.

With both sides unable to find a first-half breakthrough, Colorado and Toronto entered the interval level at zero in Commerce City.

Second Half:

TFC began the second half with a triple substitution which saw Richie Laryea, Matty Longstaff and Deandre Kerr enter the action in place of Tyrese Spicer, Brandon Servania and Derrick Etienne Jr.

The Burgundy Boys took the lead seven minutes into the restart when Reggie Cannon ran onto Darren Yapi’s pass and found the net with a side-footed effort from outside of the box, marking the American defender’s first goal since returning to MLS this September.

Entering the final 25 minutes of play, Colorado Rapids came close to adding to their lead twice in quick succession. Darren Yapi, however, was unable to convert the pair of chances created by Djordje Mihailovic, missing the target from close-range on the first attempt before Sean Johnson made his fifth save of the night on the second.

It was then the Reds’ turn to come within inches of a goal on two occasions in quick succession. First, Richie Laryea ran past Sebastian Anderson and forced Zack Steffen into a crucial shoulder save with his 79th minute goal-bound effortbefore the Steffen punched out Federico Bernardeschi’s direct free-kick attempt moments later.

The hosts were awarded a late penalty when Aimé Mabikawas adjudged to have committed a foul on Darren Yapi in the penalty area. American playmaker Djordje Mihailovic stepped up to successful convert from 12 yards, helping the Rapids seal the 2-0 victory, along with a postseason berth, from Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

Up next, TFC shift their collective focus to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps in the 2024 TELUS Canadian Championship Final with a spot in the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup on the line. Kick-off from BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia 10:00 p.m. ET (7:00 p.m. PT) and will be broadcast on OneSoccer across Canada.

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LINEUPS

COLORADO RAPIDS – Zack Steffen (C); Sebastian Anderson, Lalas Abubakar, Andreas Maxsø, Reggie Cannon (Keegan Rosenberry 56’); Connor Ronan (Jasper Löffelsend90+3’), Oliver Larraz, Darren Yapi (Jonathan Lewis 90+3’), Djordje Mihailovic, Cole Bassett (Omir Fernandez 56’); Rafael Navarro (Calvin Harris 82’)

Substitutes Not Used: Adam Beaudry, Michael Edwards, Jackson Travis, Kimani Stewart-Baynes

TORONTO FC – Sean Johnson (C); Shane O’Neill, Sigurd Rosted, Aimé Mabika; Kobe Franklin (Federico Bernardeschi 56’), Brandon Servania (Matty Longstaff 46’), Deybi Flores (Alonso Coello 72’), Kosi Thompson, Tyrese Spicer (Richie Laryea 46’); Derrick Etienne Jr. (Deandre Kerr 46’), Prince Owusu

Substitutes Not Used: Luka Gavran, Kevin Long, Raoul Petretta, Nathaniel Edwards

MEDIA NOTES

• Sigurd Rosted made his 50th appearance for Toronto FC across all competitions, becoming the tenth current TFC player (Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Deandre Kerr, Federico Bernardeschi, Shane O’Neill, Kosi Thompson, Kobe Franklin, Lorenzo Insigne and Raoul Petretta) to reach the milestone.
• Brandon Servania made his 100th Major League Soccer appearance in his sixth season (2019 – 2024) split between FC Dallas and Toronto FC.
• Servania also started his first MLS match for TFC since September 20, 2023 (368 days).

POSTMATCH SOUND

• Link can be found here