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After grind of MLS regular season, Toronto FC looks forward to Leagues Cup challenge
TORONTO — Like the rest of Major League Soccer, Toronto FC is taking a break from regular-season play to focus on the Leagues Cup.
After the grind of a busy summer schedule, the annual cup tournament for MLS and Liga MX sides offers a new challenge. Toronto, which currently sits eighth in the Eastern Conference at 9-14-3 and occupying one of the final two wild-card playoff berths, will resume its post-season push when league play resumes Aug. 24.
Toronto opens Leagues Cup play Saturday at the New York Red Bulls, with an Aug. 4 visit by Mexico’s Pachuca to come.
“An exciting opportunity for the team,” said Toronto coach John Herdman. “We’ve been battling in MLS and had a lot of games in recent times, fighting for the playoff spots … This is sort of a welcome distraction for the group to focus on a one-off game — that’s really what these are.”