Toronto FC's impressive road win backs up Bradley's 'best team in MLS' claim

Toronto FC midfielder Michael Bradley chooses his words carefully.

One of the most introspective stars in Major League Soccer, Bradley speaks slowly and takes long pauses between each sentence. You’re never quite sure if he’s finished his thought or whether he’s waiting for an interloper to jump in and keep the conversation going.

The 29-year-old captain of TFC and the US men’s national team typically stays away from hyperbole, preferring paragraphs of nuance.

So it was significant, then, how emphatically he praised his Toronto FC team-mates in the aftermath of its 1-0 win over Seattle in the rematch of last year’s MLS Cup final on Saturday at CenturyLink Field.

“We feel like we have the best team in the league,” Bradley said. “Not just one-through-11 but 12 and on.”

After this past week, it’s hard to argue with that: Toronto didn’t just take first place, they showcased depth and resilience that bode well for its Eastern Conference title defense.

Toronto topped Orlando City 2-1 last Wednesday thanks to a Sebastian Giovinco brace, throwing cold water on the red-hot Lions and re-establishing themselves as the team to beat.

The victory in Seattle was even more impressive for multiple reasons.

Toronto were playing on short rest, while the Sounders had a full week to prepare. TFC didn’t land until Seattle until the wee hours of Friday morning, and Saturday’s uncommonly early noon kickoff further messed with their body clocks.

CenturyLink is a notoriously difficult place to play – the Sounders carried a 14-match home unbeaten streak into the weekend – and its artificial turf surface takes some getting used to.

Most importantly, none of Giovinco, team-assist leader Victor Vazquez or starting defenders Eriq Zavaleta and Steven Beitashour made the trip. This was very much a weakened TFC, and they walked away with a victory that would have been hugely impressive even at full strength.

“If we wanted, there were a million excuses today: short rest, brutal travel day, early kickoff, turf, a few guys that are at home, you name it,” Bradley said. “But good teams with real mentalities find ways on all types of days to compete and to win.”

Toronto didn’t just beat the defending champions; they got the best of the Sounders throughout. Sure, statistics were mostly evenly split, and Seattle had more possession. But as Bradley correctly noted afterward, TFC “really had things totally under control.”

Jozy Altidore, who helped set up, won and converted the decisive penalty kick midway through the first half, was a handful throughout. His ability to wreak havoc as a lone forward allowed TFC to drop additional numbers back and flood the midfield. Surrounded by red shirts, the Sounders never settled in.

Jay Chapman, the 23-year-old who spent the afternoon picking out passes from the middle of the pitch, was just one example of a player making his first start of the season yet not betraying any rust.

“For people who don’t really watch, or who don’t really know what they’re watching, or don’t watch with a close eye, it’s easy to look past so many of our other players,” Bradley said. “So many of our young players are continuing to improve in so many ways.”

No Toronto player claimed that this result in any way made up for last December, when Seattle triumphed on Toronto’s home field on PKs, despite not managing a single shot on goal. And yet, judging from the noisy celebrations coming out of the visiting locker room late Saturday afternoon, the win did hold special significance.

“These days can end up being some of the biggest days for your group, for its mentality,” Bradley said, “finding ways to come away with results even on days when everything seems stacked against you.”

– Of the other challenges to the best-team throne Bradley staked his claim on, only Dallas earned a positive result this weekend. FCD rolled over Salt Lake 3-0 at the suddenly vulnerable Rio Tinto Stadium – the league’s last unbeaten team is also the only squad averaging more than two points per outing.

Portland, meanwhile, dropped below Dallas after a 3-0 loss in San Jose, the defensive deficiencies that remain its biggest question mark laid bare. Orlando followed up on that defeat at Toronto by getting smoked 4-0 in Houston four days later. And Kansas City, which is still tied with FCD for first in the West on points, looked flat through a 2-0 setback at suddenly feisty Minnesota on Sunday afternoon.

– While Toronto were singing songs and hopping happily around CenturyLink Field’s visiting locker room, the mood in the home one was considerably more somber. It’s early, to be sure. And few teams in MLS better know how forgiving its playoff structure is than the Sounders, who sleepwalked through five months of last season before surging all the way to the championship.

Nine games in, however, the prevailing sentiment is shifting from early-season annoyance into mildly worrying trend. Right now, this looks a lot like the team that controlled games but couldn’t consistently win them from last March through last July.

“That the final pass, final movement, a little luck,” Seattle coach Brian Schmetzer said when asked what his team is currently missing. “A little bit more desire to get in the box and make stuff happen. Guys have to make plays. We, as a staff, have to make sure we are putting guys in good positions so they can make plays.

“Overall, there is a lot of frustration in that locker room. We are tired of the same storyline of extended possession and getting a bunch of chances (and not taking advantage). That storyline is getting very old, very fast.”

– Break up the Loons! Rumors of Minnesota United’s demise may have been greatly exaggerated. After a comically bad start – giving up five goals in their inaugural match then six in their home opener – the expansion team have quietly, steadily risen up the standings.

Seventh-place Minnesota now sit prettier than any of Seattle, Los Angeles and Salt Lake. That minus-10 goal differential is still a bit of an eyesore, but the shutout of Kansas City is evidence of a drastically improved defense.