Spare a thought for Robin Fraser.
Toronto FC’s coach had a hell of a time just filling out his matchday roster in Saturday’s 3-1 road loss to Charlotte FC, a result that extended the club’s winless streak to eight games across all competitions.
No less than 13 members of Toronto’s 27-man roster (48 per cent of the squad!) were ruled out due to injury: midfielders José Cifuentes (knee), Djordje Mihailovic (pelvis) and Markus Cimermancic (adductor); winger Theo Corbeanu (knee), forwards Josh Sargent (thigh), Deandre Kerr (thigh) and Jules-Anthony Vilsaint (groin); defenders Benjamin Kuscevic (groin), Zane Monlouis (knee) and Lazar Stefanovic (foot); and fullbacks Richie Laryea (thigh), Matheus Pereira (groin) and Henry Wingo (thigh).
How bad was this injury situation for TFC in North Carolina?
So bad that the bench contained only seven players (two fewer than normal) and two of those players were goalkeepers (one more than usual).
So bad that defender Stefan Kapor, a 17-year-old who has yet to make his MLS debut, was also among the substitutes.
So bad that fullback Jackson Gilman, defender Luca Costabile, midfielder Fletcher Bank and forward Dékwon from TFC 2, the MLS club’s reserve team, were signed to short-term contracts for this match.
Despite the injury crisis, Toronto played Charlotte even for most of the contest, bossed the game at times and often looked the more dangerous side going forward. If they gave out points for moral victories, TFC would’ve picked up all three on this evening.
It was far from perfect from Toronto, as defensive lapses and poor goalkeeping led to Charlotte’s first two goals on the night. But overall, the visitors more than held their own while playing severely short-handed in a stadium where their only previous win came in 2022.
“Injuries happen and we’re a team and we have to find ways to do it. … It is what it is, and we have to use who we have to use. And at the end of the day, these guys stepped up and did well,” Fraser said in the post-match press conference.
Notably, Gilman put in a man-of-the-match effort in his MLS debut, starting in central defence next to veteran Walker Zimmerman, a former two-time MLS defender of the year. Far from over awed by the occasion, Gilman, a second-round pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft, looked composed and impressed with his solid two-play on the night.
Gilman had two goal scoring chances — and had a goal controversially overturned following a VAR review — and was among the team’s best passers on the night (87.1 per cent) while finishing third in total touches (77). The youngster was also a dynamo on the defensive side of things with three blocked shots, two tackles, two interceptions and two clearances.
Fraser was full of praise for Gilman after the game, impressed with how he handled himself in his MLS debut in very trying circumstances.
“Jackson was a centre back in college and he’s played centre back more than he’s played anything else. I knew he was going to be fine and he was. I thought he was really solid tonight,” Fraser said.
As admirable as Toronto’s performance was in Charlotte, this situation simply isn’t sustainable. Fraser can’t reasonably be expected to earn positive results while being forced to field makeshift rosters with so many of key starters missing in action. The team’s injury situation is way out of hand, and it desperately needs healthy players back in the lineup.
After Saturday’s road match against the Chicago Fire, MLS will go on a hiatus until mid-July due to the FIFA World Cup. TFC must use the seven-and-a-half-week break to do everything in their power to ensure as many players are back to full fitness when it returns to action in the summer. If not, the Reds run the risk of letting the season slip entirely through their fingers.
Elsewhere in MLS this weekend…
• The Vancouver Whitecaps suffered just their second loss of the MLS campaign — and first since March 21 – after dropping a 1-0 decision away to the Houston Dynamo. Brazilian winger Guilherme scored deep into injury time for Houston to snap Vancouver’s seven-match unbeaten run.
• CF Montreal became the last team to fall victim to Hugo Cuypers. The Belgian striker netted his league-leading 13th goal of the season in a 2-0 road win to become just the third player in MLS history to score in 10 consecutive regular-season matches (Josef Martinez and Carlos Vela are the others).
• Inter Miami was winless in its first four home matches (with three losses) since opening Nu Stadium last month. But the MLS champions finally got off the mark at their new home venue with a 2-0 win over the Portland Timbers courtesy of a goal and an assist from Lionel Messi.
• Hany Mukhtar put on quite the show in Nashville SC’s 3-2 win over LAFC. The German midfielder scored all three goals for the home side to become just the seventh player in MLS history to record five career regular-season hat tricks. He also became the first player to score two direct free-kick goals in the same game since ex-FC Cincinnati star Luca Orellano in August 2024.
• The Columbus Crew’s 1-1 road draw against the last-place Philadelphia Union ended up being the last straw for GM Issa Tallas as he fired first-year coach Henrik Rydström on Sunday. The Swede led the Crew to just three victories through their first 14 matches of the regular season. It’s the fourth coaching change of the year in MLS: Orlando City, Inter Miami and CF Montreal previously parted company with their managers.
Editor’s note
John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 27 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.