TORONTO

Robert Earnshaw’s early season production has largely masked the personnel dilemma Toronto FC head coach Ryan Nelsen must address ahead of this weekend’s match at home to FC Dallas.

Like any consistent poacher, Earnshaw’s made the most of what he has been given, potting a pair of penalty kicks and capitalizing on rare defensive blunders that won’t continue to happen at the current rate.

But in doing so, the Welshman’s goal-per-game pace has hidden a not-so-talked about statistic in terms of TFC’s ability to produce going forward.

Leading up to the 78th minute Saturday, when Luis Silva combined brilliantly with rookie midfielder Jonathan Osorio to temporarily go up on the L.A. Galaxy, the Reds had yet to score without a little help from the opposition.

To quantify that: Toronto’s first non-gift wrapped goal came 348 minutes into the season.

Sure, TFC’s front office will say the team created chances through applied pressure and defensive tactics, but let’s be honest — the Reds, until late in Saturday’s draw with the visiting Galaxy, had offered far too little at the offensive end.

“We need to have a solid base first and then we can go from there,” Nelsen said after the 2-2 draw. “We scored two goals against a team that hasn’t conceded two goals since when? Not this season. I’m not arguing (we can’t be more creative), but we still scored two goals when other teams haven’t.”

Until now, a pre-season injury to Silva has forced Nelsen’s hand. Add to that the need for rookie playmaker Kyle Bekker to take a back seat as he continues to develop and Nelsen had no other option but to use a pair of depth players — Terry Dunfield and Jeremy Hall — centrally.

“This is a process,” Nelsen said when asked if he would look to alter his midfield in the coming weeks. “We’ve got to start throwing out some clean sheets; we’ve got to start getting more solid. Then we can start adding in the creativity.”

But after five consecutive halves of being out possessed and, most would say, outclassed through the centre circle, it’s time to replace one of Hall or Dunfield with someone who can pull the strings.

Adding Silva into the midfield mix will also give Hogan Ephraim, who has struggled to show the sublime skill he possesses, someone to combine with inside 25 metres from goal.

On loan from Queens Park Rangers, Ephraim has been frustrated by limited touches the last few games and needs a second creative mind beneath Earnshaw to play off of — or risk becoming TFC’s latest Eric Avila.

“(Silva and Osorio) came on and played very well,” Nelsen said. “I’ve still got guys on the bench as well, guys I can’t even put in the squad, who are international players … We’re always looking to improve the squad. Hopefully we can bring in some more players who can create even more competition.”

As witnessed following Silva’s late-game introduction on Saturday, the quickest fix is already in the side.

AND ANOTHER THING

Does Nelsen issue Darel Russell a second-straight start this Saturday following an opening performance that wasn’t for the faint of heart?

After Russell’s late-game gaffe allowed the Galaxy to pull level in second-half stoppage time Saturday, surely Ashtone Morgan’s reinsertion is in the cards.

Nelsen elected to sit Morgan against the two-time defending champions in favour of Russell, who started at right fullback while Richard Eckersley took Morgan’s spot on the left.

In his MLS debut, Russell looked fatigued, which could have been to blame for the lack of concentration late in Saturday’s game.

OK, Morgan had a bit of a howler when the Reds fell in Montreal last month, but Russell’s introductory display surely secured the TFC academy product’s spot ahead of Russell on the club’s defensive depth chart.

SWISS VOLCANO ERUPTS ... AGAIN

Montreal Impact head coach Marco Schallibaum might receive a call from MLS headquarters in the coming days after the “Swiss Volcano” — as he’s called — appeared to erupt towards the end of Montreal’s 2-0 loss in Kansas City on the weekend.

Schallibaum tossed a half-full water bottle in referee Jorge Gonzalez’s direction toward the end of Saturday night’s match before being ejected at Sporting Park.

Schallibaum’s latest “mistake” comes two weeks after getting into a post-game dustup with a number of Toronto FC personnel for what he said was disrespect he received during the game from TFC defender Richard Eckersley.

For his role in the heated exchange, Eckersley told reporters after TFC’s match in Montreal that he didn’t appreciate Schallibaum refusing to return the ball to him ahead of a throw-in.