Toronto FC moved into second place in the Eastern Conference on Wednesday with a 2-0 win over the New York Red Bulls at BMO Field.
Pablo Vitti opened the scoring 28 minutes into the match, while Dwayne De Rosario added a second with 30 minutes to play, leaving Toronto (6-5-4) one point behind Eastern leaders D.C. United and one point clear of third-placed Chicago.
TFC has now won three of its last five games, while New York (2-11-4) is winless in its last eight and remains on the bottom of the Eastern Conference table.
It took until the 28th minute for the match to come to life, and it was defender Nana Attakora who got up the right flank and created the chance.
Attakora picked up a poor clearance and floated the ball into the box, where Vitti was left open at the back post. The ball took a big bounce off the turf, but goalkeeper Danny Cepero hesitated, allowing Vitti to loop a header over his head and into the back of the net.
The goal was a boost to the home side, and they controlled play over the remainder of the opening half and nearly added to their lead.
Amado Guevara was left open in front of goal but his header from eight yards was straight at the keeper, while De Rosario's through ball to Vitti almost handed the striker a second goal, but he stabbed his shot wide.
De Rosario could have put his name on the scoresheet right before the break, but his effort was cleared off the line by Andrew Boyens with Cepero out of position.
The Red Bulls were able to generate a chance in the 47th minute as Nick Zimmerman fired over the net from 20 yards, while Chad Barrett had the ball in the net for Toronto minutes later, but was ruled offsides.
The home side did extend its lead in the 59th minute, with Barrett playing provider as he took a pass on the right wing and lobbed a ball over the top to De Rosario, who took the ball down off his chest and chipped it over the keeper.
Toronto could have added to its lead in the final 10 minutes, but Cepero produced a great save on Sam Cronin's long-range effort, while a few minutes later, De Rosario had his shot stopped by Cepero at the near post
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Pablo Vitti opened the scoring 28 minutes into the match, while Dwayne De Rosario added a second with 30 minutes to play, leaving Toronto (6-5-4) one point behind Eastern leaders D.C. United and one point clear of third-placed Chicago.
TFC has now won three of its last five games, while New York (2-11-4) is winless in its last eight and remains on the bottom of the Eastern Conference table.
It took until the 28th minute for the match to come to life, and it was defender Nana Attakora who got up the right flank and created the chance.
Attakora picked up a poor clearance and floated the ball into the box, where Vitti was left open at the back post. The ball took a big bounce off the turf, but goalkeeper Danny Cepero hesitated, allowing Vitti to loop a header over his head and into the back of the net.
The goal was a boost to the home side, and they controlled play over the remainder of the opening half and nearly added to their lead.
Amado Guevara was left open in front of goal but his header from eight yards was straight at the keeper, while De Rosario's through ball to Vitti almost handed the striker a second goal, but he stabbed his shot wide.
De Rosario could have put his name on the scoresheet right before the break, but his effort was cleared off the line by Andrew Boyens with Cepero out of position.
The Red Bulls were able to generate a chance in the 47th minute as Nick Zimmerman fired over the net from 20 yards, while Chad Barrett had the ball in the net for Toronto minutes later, but was ruled offsides.
The home side did extend its lead in the 59th minute, with Barrett playing provider as he took a pass on the right wing and lobbed a ball over the top to De Rosario, who took the ball down off his chest and chipped it over the keeper.
Toronto could have added to its lead in the final 10 minutes, but Cepero produced a great save on Sam Cronin's long-range effort, while a few minutes later, De Rosario had his shot stopped by Cepero at the near post
