Toronto FC battled back yet again to force a 3-3 draw with visitors Orlando City SC on Wednesday night.
Matheus Pereira redeemed his first-half penalty, goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau parrying Djordje Mihailovic’s cross off the Brazilian full-back, who only had to steer it in to tie the game in the 89th minute for TFC (7-10-12, 33 points).
Martin Ojeda (48 goals) passed Facundo Torres as the Lions’ (11-13-5, 38 points) all-time leading scorer with a goal off a penalty in the first half. Antoine Griezmann and Theo Corbeanu each tallied a goal and an assist.
Fresh off a late equalizer against Montreal four nights before, Lewis Morgan leapt into Corbeanu’s floated cross from the touchline, placing it into the corner of goal to make it 1-0 in the 26th minute. Crepeau made no attempt to get a glove on the perfectly placed header from near the penalty spot.
Ojeda tied it on a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time, directing a low, powerful strike just inside the post. Pereira was unlucky to concede the spot kick, the ball bouncing off the turf and hitting him in the wrist. The penalty was Orlando’s only attempt on target in the first half.
Niklas Dorsch picked off a poor pass from Ivan Angulo and jinked around a defender, but was denied by Crepeau on a one-on-one. The ball skipped off Daniel Salloi and into the path of Corbeanu, who poked it in at the far post to give his team the lead in the 49th minute.
Griezmann tied the game 2-2 in the 77th minute, Iago Teodoro knocking the ball into his path. Toronto’s Josh Sargent failed to clear the original ball off a set piece.
Griezmann let Ivan Angulo’s ball slip through his legs and into the path of Daryl Dike, who curled the ball past goalkeeper Luka Gavran to make it 3-2 in the 83rd minute.
Salloi headed the ball into the back of the net in the 14th minute but the goal was chalked off on an offside.
The result marked Toronto’s ninth draw at home on the season and the eighth time they came from behind to record at least a point.
–Field Level Media
