Toronto FC head coach Robin Fraser believes his side “will only get stronger” with the addition of Josh Sargent and players returning from injury.
Toronto picked up their first win of the season last time out, edging past FC Cincinnati in a 1-0 victory at TQL Stadium, though new signing Sargent was not included in the squad.
All three of Toronto’s games so far in 2026 have been away from home, though their next nine MLS matches will be played at BMO Field, starting with the New York Red Bulls on Saturday.
Fraser insisted things can only get better for the Reds after the win against Cincinnati as they look forward to their long homestand.
“When you work this hard, you want to reward yourself,” Fraser said after the win.
“Even the way they dug in at the very end is so important, because it’s about establishing what our identity is going to be and what our character is going to be like as a group.
“Now to go home and have these games at home, we should feel good about what we’ve done, but also understand that we still have to work to do.
“I think for us to come through these three games, obviously the last one being the most positive one in almost every fashion, I think it just sets us up for this long homestand we have.
“This is a group that did really well, and then you feel like you add Josh, and you’ve got other guys coming back from injuries that will only get stronger.”
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— Toronto FC (@TorontoFC) March 11, 2026
The Red Bulls, meanwhile, saw their winning start to the 2026 season end with a 3-0 defeat to CF Montreal last time out.
The defeat saw NYRB drop to fourth in the Eastern Conference, as rivals New York City FC took top spot.
“It is a hard lesson, but an important one, for sure,” Head Coach Michael Bradley said.
“We did not manage to take our football and our control of the game and turn it into enough big chances.
“A few times we play balls across the six-yard box in really dangerous ways and we did not have anyone running in there, that part, for sure, let us down a little bit.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Toronto FC – Richie Laryea
Laryea won five fouls in Toronto’s victory over Cincinnati last weekend.
Laryea has won 16 fouls so far this season, three more than any other player in MLS.
New York Red Bulls – Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting
Choupo-Moting made his first start of the season during the Red Bull’s defeat to Montreal last time out.
The former Bayern Munich striker was NYRB’s top scorer last season, finding the back of the net 17 times in 33 MLS games.
MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW
Toronto earned their first points of the season in their win over Cincinnati. The Reds are looking for consecutive regular-season wins for the first time since victories over Montreal and the Houston Dynamo in July-August 2024.
NYRB, however, are unbeaten in 13 straight regular-season meetings with Toronto (W9 D4) dating back to 2019.
This is the longest active unbeaten run by any team against another in MLS and the longest against any single opponent in New York’s history.
The Red Bulls won their first away match of the season at Orlando City on February 21.
NYRB have not won consecutive regular-season away matches since their last two on the road in 2023, having totalled seven wins in 35 away league matches since the start of the 2024 season (D11 L17).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Toronto FC – 38.7%
Draw – 26.5%
New York Red Bulls – 34.7%