The former Sunderland striker opened the scoring in TFC’s 2-1 win at the Chicago Fire to give him six goals in his last eight MLS appearances.
Jozy Altidore continued his fine run of form on Saturday night, bagging his sixth goal in eight MLS matches to help Toronto FC secure a 2-1 win at the Chicago Fire.
The former Sunderland striker was coming off a two-goal display for the US national team in Tuesday night’s 4-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Trinidad and Tobago, and it was not long before he was performing similar heroics to put his club side in front at Toyota Park.
Shortly after the half-hour mark, the 26-year-old forward received a pass from Justin Morrow on the edge of the box and took one touch before slotting a shot into the back of the net in confident fashion.
The in-form @jozyaltidore gives @TorontoFC the lead. #CHIvTOR https://t.co/xho06adftE
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 11, 2016
That was not Altidore’s only significant contribution on the night, however, as he later teed up Jonathan Osorio to double Toronto’s lead seven minutes after half-time thanks to a horrific goalkeeping error.
After the Fire’s Sean Johnson telegraphed a throw directly at him, the physical front man only needed to knock the ball down into the path of his teammate, who promptly provided the finish into an unguarded net.
Chicago did manage to pull a goal back six minutes later through Dutch forward Michael de Leeuw to set up a tense final 30 minutes, but the visitors managed to hold on to secure all three points.
Unsurprisingly, TFC head coach Greg Vanney was quick to praise his star striker for his performance at the final whistle, telling MLSSoccer.com: “Jozy does a lot for us on the field on both sides of the ball, attacking and defending and obviously he’s a guy that can hold up the ball.
“He’s strong. He brings so much to our group from his personality to what he does on the field for us on both sides of the ball and it’s great to have him scoring goals.
“I know he feels great, he’s in a good place, and it’s up to us to just keep working with him to make sure that he stays there. I think we’ve got the right answers for that now.”
Altidore actually received plenty of criticism over the first half of the season, having failed to score in his opening eight appearances before spending two months on the sidelines due to a hamstring strain.
The 95-times capped American has been in scintillating form since returning to action in late-July, however, and insists that the scrutiny from both fans and the media never really bothered him.
“Anybody knows me, I’m a simple guy,” he told MLSSoccer.com. “I don’t really buy into all that stuff. I’m happy to do what I do for a living, take care of my family, and enjoy these amazing experiences that I am blessed to have.
“Being able to travel the world, play soccer, represent my country, represent the great city of Toronto, I’m just lucky and I just try to enjoy the ride.”
Saturday’s result means Toronto move to the top of the Eastern Conference on 46 points – two ahead of second-placed New York City FC with a game in hand – and leaves them all but guaranteed to make their second straight playoff appearance with six regular season matches left.
They still sit five points behind FC Dallas in the Supporters’ Shield race, but with five of their remaining matches taking place at home and their Western Conference counterparts having played a game more, they certainly have a good chance of bridging the gap over the coming weeks.
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