Post by QPR Report on Sept 9, 2009 6:19:18 GMT
If he'd only stuck with us, he could have been a contender!
CBC News - John F. Molinaro, CBC Sports
Toronto FC's Dichio set to retire
Veteran striker will announce retirement Wednesday
The Major League Soccer club has called a media conference for Wednesday morning, when veteran striker Danny Dichio will officially announce his retirement, a source told CBCSports.ca.
Dichio, who turns 35 in October, is expected to join Toronto's coaching staff immediately.
The Englishman is walking away from the game as a player at the same time his team is desperately trying to secure its first playoff berth since entering the MLS as an expansion franchise three years ago.
Toronto sits 11th overall in the MLS standings with 31 points and is three spots behind Real Salt Lake, which occupies the eighth and final playoff position.
The Reds are involved in a seven-way dogfight for the final four post-season berths but, with just six games left in the season, time is running out.
Renowned for his combative and confrontational playing style, the six-foot-three Dichio cemented his status as a club icon on May 12, 2007, when he scored the franchise's very first goal in a 3-1 win over the Chicago Fire.
To this day, whether he's on the field or not, fans still burst out into song and chant his name in the 24th minute during home games — his goal against Chicago came in the 24th minute — a tribute to the most popular player ever to wear the team's trademark red-and-white jersey.
Dichio's status a hot topic
Dichio, who back in March declared he planned to retire at the end of the 2009 MLS season, is also Toronto's all-time leading scorer with 14 goals in 59 appearances.
The Englishman's status with Toronto has been a hot topic since he didn't travel with the team to Los Angeles on Aug. 22, when Toronto dropped a 2-0 decision to Chivas USA.
Asked about Dichio's absence, coach Chris Cummins said the striker was too banged up physically to travel to West Coast games and be an asset to the club, and would only be asked to make such road trips in an emergency.
But Dichio subsequently flew to Seattle and Denver for road games the past two weeks, and played the final 20 minutes in Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids.
Before the Colorado game, Dichio's last appearance in a regular-season contest had come in a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Crew on July 25, when he played three minutes as a late substitute.
Dichio played for handful of English clubs during a 14-year spell before joining Toronto in 2007.
After making his professional debut in 1993 with Queens Park Rangers, Dichio spent time at Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, Millwall and Preston North End. He also had brief stints with Italian clubs Lecce and Sampdoria.
www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2009/09/08/sp-mls-torontofc-dichio.html
CBC News - John F. Molinaro, CBC Sports
Toronto FC's Dichio set to retire
Veteran striker will announce retirement Wednesday
The Major League Soccer club has called a media conference for Wednesday morning, when veteran striker Danny Dichio will officially announce his retirement, a source told CBCSports.ca.
Dichio, who turns 35 in October, is expected to join Toronto's coaching staff immediately.
The Englishman is walking away from the game as a player at the same time his team is desperately trying to secure its first playoff berth since entering the MLS as an expansion franchise three years ago.
Toronto sits 11th overall in the MLS standings with 31 points and is three spots behind Real Salt Lake, which occupies the eighth and final playoff position.
The Reds are involved in a seven-way dogfight for the final four post-season berths but, with just six games left in the season, time is running out.
Renowned for his combative and confrontational playing style, the six-foot-three Dichio cemented his status as a club icon on May 12, 2007, when he scored the franchise's very first goal in a 3-1 win over the Chicago Fire.
To this day, whether he's on the field or not, fans still burst out into song and chant his name in the 24th minute during home games — his goal against Chicago came in the 24th minute — a tribute to the most popular player ever to wear the team's trademark red-and-white jersey.
Dichio's status a hot topic
Dichio, who back in March declared he planned to retire at the end of the 2009 MLS season, is also Toronto's all-time leading scorer with 14 goals in 59 appearances.
The Englishman's status with Toronto has been a hot topic since he didn't travel with the team to Los Angeles on Aug. 22, when Toronto dropped a 2-0 decision to Chivas USA.
Asked about Dichio's absence, coach Chris Cummins said the striker was too banged up physically to travel to West Coast games and be an asset to the club, and would only be asked to make such road trips in an emergency.
But Dichio subsequently flew to Seattle and Denver for road games the past two weeks, and played the final 20 minutes in Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids.
Before the Colorado game, Dichio's last appearance in a regular-season contest had come in a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Crew on July 25, when he played three minutes as a late substitute.
Dichio played for handful of English clubs during a 14-year spell before joining Toronto in 2007.
After making his professional debut in 1993 with Queens Park Rangers, Dichio spent time at Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, Millwall and Preston North End. He also had brief stints with Italian clubs Lecce and Sampdoria.
www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2009/09/08/sp-mls-torontofc-dichio.html