Seattle and TFC have never reached a championship game before – so Saturday’s final should be extra special. Our MLS writers discuss what’s likely to go down

TFC’s most important player

It’s tempting to say Clint Irwin, since Toronto shipped five goals in the Conference final even though they scored seven. But if we’re picking one of the trio of designated players to make a difference, let’s assume Giovinco and Bradley do exactly what they’re supposed to do, and Jozy Altidore does that and more, as his been his pattern in these playoffs. If he keeps up his record of scoring in every playoff round, he’ll be their most important player. GP

If you’re not thinking Giovinco, you’re delusional. Had it not been for a strain injury that kept him out of action for three weeks halfway through the season, the Atomic Ant would have contested David Villa for MVP. Everything goes through the Italian and Seattle knows that their best chance of winning is to shut him out. LME

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It would be ludicrous, pointlessly contrarian and pretentious to include any other name here: Justin Morrow. I kid. Though by his own standards he didn’t exactly run rampant in the two conference final legs against the Montreal Impact, Sebastian Giovinco was still integral to Toronto FC’s game plan. He put up the perfect cross for Jozy Altidore to head TFC back in the game at 3-0 down in a deafening Olympic Stadium, took the corner kick that pulled Toronto level in the second leg, and then gave them the go ahead goal with another corner late in the first half to Altidore in that wild game in the rain. Seba’s patience on the ball and his immaculate technique and timing will be crucial to TFC getting a foothold early. RW

Giovinco. How could it possibly be anyone else? There are more structurally important players in the TFC lineup, but the Italian is the league’s best player, maybe even the best player in the league’s history. Giovinco can win a game all on his own and he will surely have a say on Saturday. GR

Seattle’s most important player

Hard to look beyond Nicolas Lodeiro. Yes, the pace and finishing of Jordan Morris could be decisive, and Ozzie Alonso’s renaissance in the heart of midfield could be equally pivotal, but the common denominator in both their performances is that Lodeiro makes every player around him function at peak efficiency. Never mind playmaker, he’s been a team maker in the second half of the season. GP

If Giovinco is Toronto’s most important player, for this game Seattle’s has to be Osvaldo Alonso, Giovinco’s kryptonite. The 31-year-old Cuban midfielder will have the arduous task of disrupting Gio’s creativity and if he succeeds then the Sounders have a great chance of winning. LME

Again, maybe it’s because they’re both MLS Cup finalists, but there is little debate on this question for either side. Yes, Jordan Morris is a revelation up front, but Nicolas Lodeiro is the lodestone for Seattle at the moment, yet another Uruguayan player who has taken to MLS like a duck to water. Lodeiro is more of a midfield playmaker than Giovinco, consistently generating decent chances with some visionary passing. He has eight assists since arriving in late July, and it was Lodeiro’s drawn penalty and conversion which proved the winner over two legs against Colorado. RW

Osvaldo Alonso. Jordan Morris’ goals have carried the Sounders all the way to the MLS Cup final, but without Alonso anchoring Brian Schmetzer’s side in the centre of the pitch everything would fall apart. Up against Michael Bradley and Giovinco dropping deep, the midfield battle is one Alonso must win at BMO Field. GR

What TFC need to do to win

Toronto can’t expect to be gifted the set piece goals Montreal gave them in the last round, and the Sounders won’t fold like NYCFC did in the Conference semi-finals. The game might be tight, even dull for long stretches as Seattle work to stay organized and close Toronto’s creative attackers down, so the hosts’ best hope is going to be in pushing their wide players up from the back and forcing Seattle’s defense to make decisions on who and when to track. GP

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Sebastian Giovinco and Jozy Altidore. Photograph: Chris Young/AP

Pep Guardiola always says that aside from possession, a team’s biggest priority is defending a counter-attack, and that’s exactly what Toronto need to focus on. The Canadians will probably have more of the ball so they need to be wary of Seattle’s fast break. LME

Defend. Though thrilling for neutrals and fun – if only in retrospect – for their fans, Toronto rode their luck in conceding five goals against Montreal over two legs. Part of the problem was the failure of Toronto’s fullbacks Beitashour and Morrow to track back enough to cover on the counter, a failure that was particularly exposed in the first leg and played to Dominic Oduro’s strengths. Though Toronto fought their way back into the tie in the second leg, they did so in part on the back of three good corners. That fortunate strategy may not be enough against disciplined Seattle team. They’ll need a match that more closely resembles their dominant display against New York City FC in the conference semis to win. RW

Find the connection between fans and players again. It was almost as if the crowd sucked the ball into the net at times during the whirlwind conference final second leg over Montreal, such was the atmosphere at BMO Field. With that kind of backing TFC will have an even greater advantage. Fans don’t win games, but they most certainly can be a factor. GR

What Seattle need to do to win

Seattle will feel they have a set-piece advantage and Lodeiro can certainly serve up dangerous balls into the box for any foul within 35 yards of goal. And of course, on the occasions when Toronto commit wide men forward, any combination of three at the back will be vulnerable to a ball slipped past them for Morris to run onto. Really though, Seattle need to be efficient with limited chances, and frustrate Toronto to take the crowd out of the game. In previous years they’ve possessed an attack that looks set to sweep all before it only to fail in the playoffs. This year, a modest team that functions well needs to know its strengths and perform to them. GP

Given the nature of their opponent and the fact that they are playing at BMO Field, Seattle know that they might not see much of the ball, especially in the first 15 minutes. They cannot afford to concede early as this might completely ruin their overall strategy. The longer they keep it 0-0, the better for Schmetzer and his squad. LME



Attack relentlessly and with discipline. Seattle are defensively good but not great, and they’re up against a Toronto FC side that scored 17 goals in their last 5 playoff matches. The idea they can shell their way to a ‘smart’ victory in a rabid BMO Field is naive. Moreover, TFC gave a masterclass on their defensive frailties against the Impact over two legs. If the Sounders can get at Michael Bradley for some advantageous turnovers – looking at Ozzie Alonso here – they might be able to slow service to Altidore and Seba and help Morris find space behind Morrow and Nick Hagglund to get in on goal more than once. RW

Repeat their conference final second leg performance. Against the Colorado Rapids the Seattle Sounders were more conservative than they usually are, soaking up pressure, plugging the gaps and hitting out on the counter. That game plan goes against the grain of their strengths as a side, but given TFC’s attacking potency they must aim to repeat the performance they pulled off in Commerce City two weeks ago. GR

The winners will be …

The team that scores first. So Seattle in a tight game, or Toronto at a canter. I’ll choose Toronto as the home team, and because they have more difference makers on the field. GP

Toronto. They will concede, no doubt, but there’s just too much firepower, too much talent, too much momentum for them not to take this one. Toronto win 3-2 in ET. LME

With home advantage and a rampant attack, Toronto FC should win by yet another gangbusters scoreline, perhaps 4-2. But then again, the ghosts of Toronto’s past haven’t been expunged quite yet. Despite what should be a hefty home advantage, there’s always the possibility Toronto’s attack will go silent at the worst possible time, or for there to be an unfortunate early injury. Football can be cruel, and it’s been very cruel lately to Toronto in particular. RW



Toronto FC. The Seattle Sounders have momentum on their side, but with Giovinco an irrepressible hub of attacking energy and Jozy Altidore in the MLS form of his career, scoring five goals in five playoff outings, Toronto FC will simply have too many goals in them to be stopped. Their victory on Saturday will be a defining image in the history of the club and the league as a whole. GR

Is this match-up good for MLS?

Yes. Two big, under-performing teams in solid markets and with fanbases that are distinct and visible presences in their respective cities. There gets to be a new winner in a fashion that doesn’t feel wholly random, but as part of a process of one of these two teams building for this for their entire history. With apologies to Columbus and Portland last year, it’s a much more intriguing game for the neutral and after both New York teams and LA Galaxy went out in the semis, this was probably the best case scenario left for MLS marketing bods. GP

I think this is the perfect matchup for MLS. On one side you have a Canadian team with a great fanbase and three DPs who are delivering, and on the other you have a squad where one of your best players is an American who made his trade in college soccer. Both teams have never been here before. It’s a win, any way you look at it. LME

This is a pretty good advert for MLS 2.0 or 3.0 or whatever iteration we’re at now. Seattle and Toronto were the first expansion markets to fill stadiums and generate excitement around the idea of North Americans regularly turning up en masse for domestic soccer games. It certainly will quiet some of the resentment some Canadian soccer fans feel against MLS, particularly related to the fight over Canadian players’ ‘internationals’ status and the feeling that the league doesn’t have Canadian soccer’s best interests at heart (which is probably true). Plus, there’s the fact that while Seattle arrived later to MLS than TFC, they have enjoyed far more success in the league. Now Toronto can pip them to a first MLS Cup on home soil. RW

Yes. For me, it’s the most exciting MLS Cup final match-up in years. As something of an outsider I take interest in gauging the growth and development of the league and these two clubs can achieve some sort of fulfilment on Saturday. Played in a newly renovated and expanded stadium (arguably the best in MLS) in front of a sold out crowd, this more than satisfies the ‘advert for the league’ cliche. GR

One player who deserves an MLS title

Ozzie Alonso. He’s had years of watching feted strike forces misfire a few yards in front of him, in the Sounders serial playoff disappointments. And having been offered around other clubs in the off-season he’s seized his unexpected reprieve by playing some driven soccer in recent weeks. He deserves this. GP

Osvaldo Alonso. Nevermind that he was snubbed as part of MLS best XI (he clearly had the best season of his career) The Cuban Kante has been in the league for eight years and despite all his achievements (four-time US Open Cup champion, three-time MLS All-Star) he is still waiting for his first MLS CUP victory, and this might be his last chance. LME

Though there is a case for Michael Bradley considering the shit-kicking he has sometimes received from aggrieved US men’s national team supporters under Jurgen Klinsmann’s reign of error, the player who deserves the title is one who won’t play on Saturday: Clint Dempsey. Twice a runner-up with the New England Revolution, and now out of the side indefinitely with an irregular heartbeat at 33 years of age, Seattle should do it for the rappin’ Texan and future US Soccer Hall of Famer. RW

Zach Scott. It’s unlikely the 36-year-old will start, but he more than anyone else on either side’s roster deserves to lift the MLS Cup. There before the MLS days, the defender is the definition of a club stalwart, turning out over 270 times for the Sounders over two stints spanning 14 years. Mr Sounder, as Sigi Schmid once dubbed him, has more than served his time. GR

One bold prediction

I already tweeted this in the semi-final between Toronto and Montreal, but if this game heads into the same surreal territory as that one, then I predict Justin Trudeau will appear from the sky to score the winning goal, before celebrating by offering Canadian asylum for all. GP

Inebriatti, Toronto’s controversial supporters group, will light up so many flares on the pitch that it will look like a scene from Phantom Of The Opera. LME

Win or lose, at some point in the evening Danny Dichio will cry. RW

This will be the highest scoring MLS Cup final in history. The 2003 final between San Jose and Chicago (4-2) currently holds the record, but given the way these two teams have been going of late (particularly Toronto FC) that record could fall on Saturday. What odds can I get on a Giovinco double hat-trick? How about double figures? GR