Toronto FC (7W-7L-3T, 24 points) earned their second consecutive road point after a 2-2 draw against D.C.
United (4W-6L-7T, 19 points), courtesy of goals from Derrick Etienne Jr. and Federico Bernardeschi, at
Audi Field on Saturday evening.

First Half:

Toronto FC Head Coach John Herdman rang a pair of changes from the midweek side that started against
Philadelphia Union with Sigurd Rosted and Matty Longstaff making way for Tyrese Spicer and Deybi Flores.
The Reds raced into an early lead in the nation’s capital when Derrick Etienne Jr. applied the finishing touch
on a fluid team move, including a final pass from Federico Bernardeschi, just 88 seconds into the match.
The second minute goal marked the club’s fastest goal of the 2024 season, beating Matty Longstaff’s effort
(five minutes, one second) against CF Montréal earlier in the season.

TFC doubled their first-half advantage when Bernardeschi ran onto a through ball from countryman Raoul Petretta, drove in from the right wing and fired past former Red Alex Bono in D.C’s goal. The 33^rd minute goal marked Bernardeschi’s 20^th MLS goal for the Reds, making him the sixth player in club history to reach the milestone.

Despite a flurry of chances for the hosts, the visitors maintained their two-goal advantage heading into the interval, courtesy of three saves from goalkeeper Sean Johnson through the opening 45, including a crucial stop to deny Christian Benteke’s attempted chip in the 37^th minute.

Second Half:

D.C. United were drawn into an enforced substitution in the 61^st minute when MLS Golden Boot contender Christian Benteke was replaced by Jacob Murrell due to injury. However, the Black-and-Red pulled one back when Theodore Ku-DiPietro tapped home the rebound after Sean Johnson made a spectacular save to deny Jared Stroud’s long-range effort in the 79^th minute.

Toronto’s Richie Laryea then entered the match to make his long-awaited return from injury off the bench, replacing goalscorer Derrick Etienne Jr. with the Reds up by one. Moments later, Federico Bernardeschi was shown his second yellow card of the night, reducing the Reds to 10 men for the closing stages.

With seven minutes added at the end of regular time, D.C. United were awarded a penalty kick in the 93^rd minute when referee Jon Freemon pointed to the spot after an on-field video review. TFC’s Nicksoen Gomis was shown a second yellow card for the committed foul, further reducing the visitors to nine men for the remainder of the match. Mateusz Klich then stepped up to convert from 12 yards and tie the match at two apiece.

The frenetic closing stages of the all-Eastern Conference affair saw both sides create goalscoring chances to snatch all three points on the night. The Reds’ Sean Johnson was on-hand yet again to deny Mateusz Klich’s long-range effort in the 99^th minute before a rapid TFC counter-attack almost led to a Deybi Flores goal moments later. The Black-and-Red, however, managed to find the back of the net when substitute Gabriel Pirani finished off the penultimate attack of the evening in the 100^th minute, only to be denied by the linesman’s flag for an offside in the build-up.

With both sides settling for a point each upon the final whistle in Washington, Toronto FC have recorded their joint-third best points tally in club history through 17 matches, with 24 points (7W-7L-3T) accumulated at the midway point of the 2024 MLS regular season.

Toronto FC now head into the international break before resuming MLS play on Saturday, June 15, in a home encounter against Chicago Fire FC. Kickoff from BMO Field is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast globally on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV and on TSN in Canada.

LINEUPS

D.C. UNITED – Alex Bono; Garrison Tubbs, Steve Birnbaum (C) (Matai Akinmboni 46’), Lucas Bartlett; Aaron Herrera, Mateusz Klich, Jackson Hopkins (Martín Rodríguez 61’), Pedro Santos (Kristian Fletcher 71’); Jared Stroud, Theodore Ku-DiPietro (Gabriel Pirani 79’), Christian Benteke (Jacob Murrell 61’)

Substitutes Not Used: Tyler Miller

TORONTO FC – Sean Johnson; Kevin Long, Nicksoen Gomis, Raoul Petretta (Sigurd Rosted 64’); Federico Bernardeschi, Alonso Coello (Matty Longstaff 64’), Deybi Flores, Jonathan Osorio (C), Tyrese Spicer (Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty 69’); Derrick Etienne Jr. (Ritchie Laryea 79’), Deandre Kerr

Substitutes Not Used: Luka Gavran, Aimé Mabika, Kobe Franklin, Cassius Mailula, Kosi Thompson

NOTABLES:

• Derrick Etienne Jr. scored his first MLS goal for Toronto FC.

• The goal, scored after 88 seconds, marks the Reds’ fastest goal of the 2024 season, beating the club’s previous record of five minutes and one second scored by Matty Longstaff against CF Montréal on May 18.

• Federico Bernardeschi scored his 20^th MLS goal for Toronto FC, becoming the sixth player in club history to reach the milestone.
• With a goal and assist tonight, Federico Bernardeschi has now registered 12 goal contributions (seven goals, five assists) in the last eight MLS matches he has featured in since April 13, 2024.

• Bernardeschi has now scored a goal in four of his last five MLS matches since May 4, 2024.

• Raoul Petretta registered his first assist of the 2024 season on Federico Bernardeschi’s 33^rd minute goal.
• With the tie, Toronto FC have now recorded their joint-third best points tally in club history through 17 matches, with 24 points (7W-7L-3T) accumulated at the midway point of the 2024 MLS regular season.

**POSTMATCH SOUND**