New York City FC will be looking to pick up successive wins for the first time since April when they play host to Toronto at the Red Bull Arena on Saturday night.
The Reds, who are currently rooted to the bottom of the Eastern Conference table, have failed to win any of their 19 away matches since August 2022 and will head into the weekend seeking to end this dire run.
Match preview
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New York City continue their push for post-season football as they picked up a deserved 2-0 victory over Orlando City when the sides squared off at Citi Field on Wednesday night.
Monsef Bakrar continued his fine form in front of goal as opened the scoring in the 37th minute before Brazilian youngster Talles Magno made sure of the result with a 68th-minute strike.
New York City have now gone four consecutive games without defeat, picking up two wins and two draws while keeping three clean sheets since losing three straight games at the start of August.
This fine run of form has seen Nicholas Cushing's men rise to 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings, two points behind ninth-placed DC United in the second and final playoff qualifier spot.
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Toronto, on the other hand, were left empty handed once again as they suffered a 4-0 thrashing against Inter Miami at the DRV PNK Stadium earlier this week.
Despite losing Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba to first-half injuries, the Herons turned in a superb team display, with goals coming from Facundo Farias, Benjamin Cremaschi and a brace from Robert Taylor.
With that result, Toronto have now lost 12 of their last 13 matches across all competitions, with a 3-1 victory over Philadelphia Union on August 31 being the exception.
This poor run saw Terry Dunfield's men crash out of the 2023 Leagues Cup in the group stages following successive defeats against New York City and Mexican outfit Atlas in July.
The Reds have now lost 15 of their 29 matches while claiming 10 draws and just four wins to collect 22 points and sit rooted to the bottom of the Eastern Conference table.
Team News
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New York City FC remain without the services of 36-year-old midfielder Maximiliano Moralez, who has missed the last two matches after coming off injured against Vancouver Whitecaps on September 2.
With his opener against Orlando City, Bakrar has now scored in three of the Pigeons' last four matches and we expect the Algerian striker to spearhead the attack once again, alongside Andres Jasson and Santiago Rodriguez.
Meanwhile, Toronto head into the weekend with a lengthy injury list, with the likes of Prince Osei Owusu and Adama Diomande recuperating from leg and muscle injuries respectively.
Defender Cristian Gutierrez has been sidelined since June through a hip injury while the goalkeeping duo of Sean Johnson and Gregory Ranjitsingh have been ruled out through hand and muscle injuries respectively.
In the absence of both goalkeepers, 22-year-old Tomas Romero should retain his role between the sticks for the Red, with Kobe Franklin, Sigurd Rosted, Michael Bradley and Raoul Petretta forming the defensive line.
Victor Vazquez and his replacement Brandon Servania were forced off injured inside the first half against Inter Miami on Thursday and are out of contention for the visitors.
New York City FC possible starting lineup:
Freese; Gray, Martins, Risa, OTool; Perea, Sands, Ledezma; Jasson, Rodriguez, Bakrar
Toronto possible starting lineup:
Romero; Franklin, Rosted, Bradley, Petretta; Vazquez, Camarero, Osorio; Bernardeschi, Kerr, Insigne
We say: New York City FC 2-0 Toronto
New York City have hit their stride in recent weeks and will be licking their lips as they take on an out-of-sorts Toronto side who have lost 12 of their last 13 matches. The Pigeons picked up an emphatic 5-0 victory when they met in the Leagues Cup back in July and we are backing them to come out on top once again.
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Top tip
Joshua Ojele
