November 4, 2023 – MLS NEXT Pro (MLS NEXT Pro) – Toronto FC II News Release
Heading into the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro season expectations were high for Toronto FC II.
The team was coming off a banner year under head coach Gianni Cimini, finishing second in the East, reaching the playoffs for the first time in their history, and defeating Philadelphia Union II in the Conference Semifinals before pushing eventual champions Columbus Crew 2 deep into extra time in the Eastern Final.
The players were ready for the second season of the new competition. Their expectations were high as well.
“What we did the first year and even more,” said Reshaun Walkes last week. “This time winning it. We were so close the year before and we knew what it took to get there. Taking that one extra step to get to that final and, hopefully, win it.”
It did not come to pass.
Toronto were slow out of the gates and while performances picked up in the middle of the season, the side was unable to string together enough results to make up the ground and reach the postseason.
“It could have gone better. Not going to the playoffs isn’t the greatest,” said Jordan Faria, who returned from Europe to reunite with Toronto in the offseason. “It’s disappointing because we always strive to be at the top level.”
“We had some good and bad moments, a lot of unfortunate losses, especially [late],” he continued. “If the game was 80 minutes, who knows, we could have been top three. There were moments in the season where it was difficult. It’s just one of those seasons where you learn a lot of lessons.”
Underneath the results, observers will have seen much more than an end-of-season points tally displays.
“Obviously not as good as we expected, and hoped for, but in games we did a lot more than we did last year,” highlighted Walkes. “We just couldn’t get that result, that finish, that most important thing at the end of the game like last year.”
Close watchers will have seen a young, talented side figuring themselves out as the season went on.
“Success is really disguised this year,” said Cimini. “Considering some of the performances, I would argue, aside from the last four games where we lost two instrumental players with an already depleted roster, there were more successes this year in terms of the way the team played.”
“There’s a lot of things that go into play, but as a staff and as a group of players,” he continued. “We can be proud of a good chunk of the work in terms of what we actually presented on the…
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