Shame Dichio and Gallen didn't stay fit and "mature" together at QPRToronto Globe and Mail
TFC still relying on Dichio Toronto's Danny Dichio acknowledges the TFC supporters as he carries his two year old daughter Alessia, at the end of the MLS soccer game against Chicago Fire, in Toronto on Saturday October 18 2008. The English centre forward has considered retiring at the end of this season. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young Chris Young
Former Sunderland and QPR veteran targetman figures heavily into Reds plans ahead of Saturday afternoon match at Qwest Field
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Article Comments Paul Attfield
Globe and Mail Update
Last updated on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009 02:59AM EDT
The past week has said it all for Toronto FC.
As their third season winds down – with the franchise's first playoff spot very much in doubt – 34-year-old striker Danny Dichio is still the big story for the red-clad faithful of Southern Ontario, despite him seeing just three minutes of action in the team's past four Major League Soccer games.
The truth is – and this is no disrespect to the man himself – he shouldn't be the big story.
As it is, Dichio's absence from last week's West Coast road trip, when he stayed back in Toronto to rest his aging body and spend time with his pregnant wife, only served to create a veritable storm in a teacup, no doubt made worse by the lacklustre 2-0 hiding at the hands of Chivas USA.
By now, the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment-owned franchise should be able to allow the lanky Englishman to slide easily into retirement as his last year as a professional soccer player draws to a close. But that would assume that management had stocked the team with the kind of talent that would allow Dichio to take the occasional weekend off without repercussion.
Statistically, the former QPR and Sunderland frontman is still as effective as most of the other goal scorers in the TFC camp. While the goals seemed to have dried up – he hasn't scored since early June – so have his minutes. However, in terms of production, his goals-a-game rate of 0.36 is better than the strikers he started the season alongside. Chad Barrett (0.24) and Pablo Vitti (0.12) have both flattered to deceive in front of the goal at times, although the Argentine Vitti seems to have found his niche in a more attacking midfield role.
Lately, though, the two newcomers to the TFC attack, Ali Gerba, who arrived from England's MK Dons, and rookie O'Brian White, out for most of the season recovering from torn knee ligaments, have both offered promising returns, in albeit limited action.
Gerba's rate of 0.41 seems to show promise, although he has only one goal, but he has been hampered by a long-standing knee injury, which may explain his lack of movement up front when he does play.
However, White's return of 0.70 by far and away leads the team, bettering leading goal scorer Dwayne De Rosario's 0.47, but he has only played 129 minutes, with one goal off five shots. Still, the youngster, though raw, should be Toronto's principal striker for the remainder of the season.
But Dichio will have a role to play over the last eight games, starting with today's in Seattle against the expansion Sounders. Just three points back of Seattle, with a game in hand, Toronto will be looking to steal a march on the first-year franchise, which may well have one eye on next week's U.S. Open Cup final against D.C. United.
With both Seattle and Toronto almost certainly out of the running for the top two automatic playoff berths in their respective conferences, the pair will be jostling for position for the four wild-card spots on offer.
Dichio's leadership and veteran experience, not to mention his ability to hold the ball up against former teammate Tyrone Marshall, will therefore be crucial in today's game, especially in the wake of last week's rudderless effort in California. With defender Adrian Serioux and midfielder Carl Robinson both suspended after accumulating five yellow cards each, Dichio, and captain Jim Brennan, returning from a similar suspension, will each be counted on to provide a semblance of leadership in what is MLS's most boisterous atmosphere.
The 32,000-strong Qwest Field crowd in Seattle has set attendance records in its first year, and will be looking to push the hometown Sounders to another victory over Toronto, following on from their 2-0 victory in TFC's home opener.
Dichio, however, seems unconcerned by the proposition, suggesting that the team is in fact excited by the proposition.
“We're looking forward to coming to this new stadium, for us, it's a new team in the league,” he told Toronto FC TV, “and we owe them a little favour after what they done at our place.”
www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/soccer/tfc-still-relying-on-dichio/article1269081/
