COLUMBUS – After defeating New York City FC 4-3 on aggregate goals in the Audi 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference semifinals, Columbus Crew SC will welcome No. 1 seed Toronto FC to MAPFRE Stadium and Columbus for the conference finals on Tuesday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m. ET.
Toronto advanced after an away goals tiebreaker when their aggregate goals tally with the New York Red Bulls stood at 2-2. Two away goals and a 2-1 victory in the Reds’ first match in New York came in handy days later in a second match that finished 1-0 in favor of RBNY.
A record-breaking MLS regular season yielded Toronto the Supporter’s Shield and a No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. The Red’s season was good for a 20-5-9 record and 69 points along with 74 goals scored.
Home matches were a strength for TFC, with a 13-1-3 mark coming up north. The Reds finished with a road record of 7-4-6.
The Trillium Cup between Crew SC and Toronto ended 2-1 in favor of the Reds earlier this season. The Black & Gold were victorious by a score of 2-1 in Columbus on April 15 in the first leg but dropped the final two matches to cede the cup to Toronto.
The Reds will be without two of their top forwards for the first leg of the conference finals. Jozy Altidore received a red card after an altercation in the tunnel during halftime of the second-leg match with New York and therefore will be suspended for the match in Columbus on Nov 21. Sebastian Giovinco will miss the match as well due to yellow-card accumulation.
Giovinco registered 16 goals and six assists for Toronto during the regular season while Altidore tallied 15 goals and six assists in 2017.
