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Toronto faces must-win game against Montreal

Oct 17, 2014 - 5:47 PM Toronto, ON (SportsNetwork.com) - For Toronto FC the equation is very simple on Saturday. Secure a win over the Montreal Impact at BMO Field or the club will miss the playoffs for the eighth successive season.

Toronto sits six points back of fifth-place Columbus for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with two games remaining, meaning that TFC must win its final two games while also needing the Crew to lose their last two.

Greg Vanney's side is stumbling toward the finish this season having lost their last three games, including a 3-1 defeat to Red Bull New York last time out which just about knocked the team out of postseason contention.

A win over New York would have thrust TFC into the playoff mix, but the club went down 3-0 by halftime, with Jonathan Osorio managing to pull a goal back after the break.

Toronto had the better of the chances in the second 45 minutes, but the team was certainly disappointed not to come away with a better result.

"They're down," Vanney said when asked about the feeling of his team following the loss to New York. "They're frustrated, they're dejected because they put a lot into this season. Going into this match, they believed that they could get a win, and they believed that they were going to get to the playoffs. They still felt like, in brief conversations with the guys, that we had enough chances to get back in the game. I'm proud of the way the guys went after it in the second half."

It once again looks as if TFC will miss out on the playoffs, but forward Gilberto feels as though this side has plenty to build on for next season.

"There are other teams in the league that have been together for three, four years, so it's easier for them to play together because they're used to each other," Gilberto said. "As our team continues to grow and jell together, we're going to be a strong team."

Two players who won't take part in Saturday's game for Toronto are midfielder Michael Bradley and defender Nick Hagglund, who are out through suspension.

Montreal's playoff hopes have been dashed for a while as the Impact has languished on the bottom of the East for much of the season, leaving most of the attention over the final two games for retiring forward Marco Di Vaio.

Di Vaio leads the Impact with eight goals this season, and he will be walking away at the end of the campaign after signing with Montreal as the club's first Designated Player.

The Italian scored a pair of first-half goals to put the Impact up, 2-1, at halftime against New England last weekend. But Montreal failed to hold the lead as Lee Nguyen netted the equalizer in the 69th minute.

Montreal would like to be able to send Di Vaio off on a positive note, but the team has managed just one win from its last seven games.

On Saturday Montreal will attempt to win for the first time in all competitions at Toronto since the team joined MLS, with the Impact posting a 0-2-3 mark at BMO Field.