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“To be able to see him after the final and give him a big hug and thank him, it was incredible,” Bradley said.

For Leiweke, it was the conclusion — the positive ending to a gamble he once called “financial suicide.”

“He believed in me,” Bradley said of Leiweke. “We rolled the dice together. He basically said, ‘We’re going all in together. If we’re going down, we’re going down together.’

“But if things went well it was going to be something so rewarding. If it didn’t there were going to be people left, right and centre ready to shove it in our faces that it didn’t work.”

Bradley reminisced on Monday about the “sea of red” that celebrated TFC’s MLS Cup win.

An estimated 10,000 red-clad fans looked on as Bradley’s Reds celebrated the club’s first league championship at Nathan Phillips Square.

“Surreal,” Bradley described the scene that day.

“Since the day I got here … all anyone said is, ‘Wait until you see what happens when we can finally make the playoffs; when we can potentially win a game in the playoffs. Wait until you see what happens when we can finally win.’

“The reality blew away the expectation. This was no different,” he added.

What those in Bradley’s ear didn’t say, though, was to wait and see what happens when TFC blows away fans’ expectations.

Rational onlookers know the Reds are unlikely to repeat what they accomplished last season. They’re unlikely to reach 69 points again, and unlikely to repeat as Supporters’ Shield winners this season.