TFC roll out carpet for Real Madrid
Capacity crowd expected at BMO Field for Spanish giants Friday
"I'm not going to be in awe or anything, at least not on the pitch," said defender Marvell Wynne. "We'll wait until we get off the pitch, then I'll probably be giggling like a schoolgirl trying to get an autograph or a jersey. But on the pitch, I'll treat them just like another player."
It's clear that this game is more than just a regular exhibition. Public interest in Toronto surrounding Los Galacticos' visit is so high that not only is the game itself sold out, but a near-capacity crowd is expected at BMO Field for a Real Madrid open practice on Thursday night.
The fans in attendance on both Thursday and Friday will also get to see a temporarily revamped BMO Field. TFC rolled out the red carpet for their Spanish visitors by hiding away the green carpet -- natural grass was laid over the pitch's usual FieldTurf surface on Tuesday and Wednesday, and will remain at BMO Field until Sunday.
The TFC players held their first training session on the grass on Thursday morning, and though the newly-laid surface was susceptible to a few divots, the Reds were overall very pleased.
"It's new, so it's still coming up a little bit, but I'm just glad to be back on grass," said Dwayne De Rosario. "At the end of the day it's nice to look out here and see grass in this stadium. I even think it looks a lot better."
Wynne noted that while the Reds had gotten used to the odd bounces that a ball can take on FieldTurf, the new field seems to have the opposite effect.
"It's a little heavy, the ball doesn't bounce too much," Wynne said. "It'll be interesting, it's another adjustment we have to make. ... Grass is always nice to have around. It's good on the feet. Tomorrow should be a big night, it should be fun."
The friendly will be a welcome conclusion to a busy stretch of games for TFC. Friday night's match will be Toronto's seventh in the past 21 days, and the club has not been at its best during the fixture congestion. The Reds are winless (0-2-3) over their last five games, and are coming off a 0-0 draw in Puerto Rico on Tuesday that eliminated TFC from advancing in the CONCACAF Champions League.
Reds interim head coach Chris Cummins said that while his team wanted to go further, they are at least satisfied at the progress made against international competition.
"We're disappointed with the loss to Puerto Rico, don't get me wrong. But we're a year along and we're a bit further along," Cummins said. "Last year we didn't win the Canadian Championship, this year we did. We've now faced Puerto Rico, got a little idea of what it's like to play in countries like that and opposition like that, and we've learned from it."
With an eight-day break on the horizon before Toronto's next game (August 15 against D.C. United), the Reds are looking for a quality outing against Real Madrid if for no other reason than to get the memory of the Puerto Rico tie out of their minds. But, as goalkeeper Stefan Frei pointed out, Real Madrid aren't exactly the ideal opponents for a team just looking to sharpen its skills.
"It's hard to get your confidence up against the best team in the world," Frei said. "It's a fine line because it is a friendly. We don't really have much to gain from it except maybe a bit of confidence and to get on the right foot for the next couple of games in the league. We also have to make sure that nobody gets hurt and we don't carry something like what happened to Nana [Attakora] against River Plate. That would be bad for us, especially with the big game against D.C. United coming up."
Fitness is indeed a concern for TFC given their large number of recent games, and with the memory of Attakora's hamstring injury still lingering. The young defender has missed Toronto's last four games due to the injury he picked up during the Reds' last friendly, on July 22 against Argentinean side River Plate.
Cummins said he won't take any risks with players who are nursing minor injuries, but noted that given the opposition, the Reds are willing to play at less than 100 percent.
"Nobody wants to miss this game," Cummins said. "Not just because it's Real Madrid but because they're professional footballers. They want to put themselves up against the best players in the world."
Friday's match will mark the first time that North American fans will see several of Real Madrid's newest acquisitions in action. Los Galacticos made an even bigger impact than usual in the offseason transfer market, acquiring Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema and (just within the last week) Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa in separate deals with Liverpool.
Amidst all of these stars, however, Ronaldo stands out. The 2008 FIFA World Player Of The Year is arguably the most famous player in the world due to both his skill and his high-profile stints with Manchester United and the Portuguese national team. Given that Toronto's large Portuguese community is expected to be a strong presence at the friendly in support of their national hero, there might be more Ronaldo jerseys than TFC jerseys in the stands on Friday night.
Reds captain Jim Brennan recalled facing Ronaldo as a member of the Canadian national team, when the Maple Leafs visited Portugal for an international friendly on March 26, 2005.
"He's unbelievable. He's one of the best players in the world," Brennan said. "I was fortunate to play against him and Portugal when I played for Canada, and he's something special. He's great for the fans to watch and for the players to play against. I'm sure he'll be dancing all over that ball tomorrow. ... Any time you get a chance to play against players like that, it's an honor."
Mark Polishuk is a contributor to MLSnet.com
