Toronto FC midfielder Michael Bradley holds up the trophy as the 2017 Canadian Champions Toronto FC celebrate their win over the Montreal Impact, in Toronto, on June 27, 2017.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
Sebastian Giovinco clicked back into form for Toronto FC on Tuesday night to snatch the Canadian Championship in dramatic fashion. His coach and teammates hope it's the start of a trend.
"It is a beautiful thing. We win, I score, so is good," Giovinco said shortly after scoring his second goal of the game late in injury time to give the Reds a 2-1 win over the Montréal Impact. That gave the Reds a 3-2 win on aggregate over their Major League Soccer rivals and their second consecutive Voyageurs Cup. TFC also qualified to play next year in the CONCACAF Champions League.
Giovinco's goal dispelled the tension that had been building throughout the night as the rivalry between TFC and the Impact was once again creating tense moments. Shortly after the 26,539 fans at BMO Field – a record crowd for a Canadian Championship game – was enraged there was no call when Giovinco was pulled down in the penalty box, the slick Italian striker fielded a long pass from midfielder Michael Bradley, spun around a defender and scored the championship goal.
This set off a wild celebration, not only for the fans but for Giovinco and his teammates. A good part of their joy stemmed from the fact the Atomic Ant appears to have finally shaken off the injury problems that dogged him from late last season.
Giovinco was forced out of last year's MLS Cup game with a leg injury and he missed three weeks in May with a quadriceps strain. Earlier this season he also missed two games with a heel injury, and doubts were setting in over his trouble staying healthy.
"He's just had an unfortunate season," TFC head coach Greg Vanney said. "[Tuesday night] he showed that in some moments he's just a little bit quicker than anybody else.
"He's obviously feeling the burden of being a guy who scores goals that help us win games. [Tuesday night] is the start of hopefully what can be a nice rhythm for him. Goal-scorers usually find a way to get on streaks and get running, get moving. Goals usually come in bunches for guys who know how to score foals. This is a good night for him. It's a huge night for him."
The hard feelings between the Impact and the Reds, which were building throughout the game, boiled over near the end of regulation time after a hard tackle by Montréal's Patrice Bernier. This came just after Canadian referee David Gantar, who was the subject of the fans' ire all evening, declined to call a fouls when Giovinco and fellow striker Jozy Altidore were pulled down on separate occasions.
A pushing match followed Bernier's foul, and the Impact player was given a red card. Giovinco's goal followed quickly and Impact coach Mauro Biello drew a line between the two events. He said Gantar, who calls some MLS games but not full-time, was intimidated by the Reds players into issuing the red card.
"In the end, for a game like that to be decided by the refs who are not at the level … It is unacceptable to give a card like that, a red card, in a final," Biello said. "It's disappointing. At the end of the day if you don't have the ability or the experience to make certain decisions like that, you shouldn't be on the field."
Vanney agreed that it was not "the best-officiated game in the history of soccer." But he did not think the game was decided by the referee: "If it came down to officiating, then whatever, [the Impact] can take that as their out for tonight. For me, it was two teams competing hard."
The Impact played their usual style for an away game, one that is familiar to Reds fans. They sat back in the first half, committed just four players to the attack and just barely held TFC off the scoresheet. Then they waited for a scoring chance to come their way, which it did in the 36th minute.
It was Montreal's first legitimate scoring chance of the game and midfielder Ballou Tabla made the most of it. He had a little luck when the ball curled his way after TFC defender Chris Mavinga went for a tackle. But there was no question about Tabla's finish, as he left Reds goalkeeper Clint Irwin no chance on the shot from the top of the box.
"We knew it wasn't going to be easy," Bradley said. "This is a team that challenges us at the highest level every time we play them. They have their own way of playing but they're very good at it.
"You always know when you play against [Montréal] you have to be patient. If you can be patient, move the ball around well, make sure you keep an eye on their dangerous attacking guys in transition, you will get chances. Even when it didn't come easy, we kept at it in a really strong way."
Impact goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau had a big night, as he denied Giovinco and several other Reds on scoring chances in the first half. But Giovinco connected early in the second half to tie the score 1-1 and TFC kicked up the tempo of the game and took control.