One Soccer covered it today. They commented that Toronto going to Champions League isn't controversial and that some people want to find conspiracy theories where there aren't any. Noting that Gilmore is just playing to an audience, that Montreal finished an embarrassing 18 points behind Toronto, and Gilmore should be more concerned about his own team than this.
Regardless of where Montreal finished in the MLS standings, they lost to Toronto in the Canadian Championship qualifying and were eliminated from contention. We aren't looking at bringing Halifax back into the conversation either.
Toronto won Leon and advances in Concachampions ! https://canplbrasil.blogspot.com/2021/04/toronto-vence-leon-e-avanca-na.html
Keep this in mind... Forge eliminates CD FAS in El Salvador Forge's record in the Concacaf League goes to 5-3-2 (W-D-L) despite playing just two games in Hamilton.This club is two years old. What they've done in this competition is nothing short of remarkable. #CanPL— Oliver Platt (@plattoli) August 18, 2021
A great result for Forge! The CAN2 slot is now just five points from advancing to the top half of the preliminary bracket for next year's CL. The level of competition steps up dramatically in the next round as Forge face Independiente who are the highest ranked team in the entire CL. I really hope that Forge will finally be able to play their home game at home as that would very much boost their chances.
Having dispatched Independiente last round, Forge now travel to Costa Rica to open their series against Santos de Guapiles. Two teams were kicked out of the tournament last round for cheating leaving only seven teams in this quarter final round. The top six go on to next year's CCL so Hamilton can make it even if they don't advance to the next round of this year's CL. They currently sit fifth in the rankings and the two teams below them play each other in this round. So if either Motagua or Marathon takes both games of their series, Forge are in the CCL no matter what they themselves do. A win in even one of their upcoming games would almost certainly see Forge in the CCL and, of course, if they win the series against Santos they make it automatically. I'm optimistic we'll see two Canadian teams in the CCL for the first time next year. It's also worth considering how dominant Forge have been in these early days of the CPL. They've earned all three CL berths, won both North Star Shields, and one of the regular season titles. This year again they are very much in the running for the regular season title (2 points out of first with two games in hand) and practically, although not mathematically, they've locked up a playoff berth and a shot at a third straight Shield. Finally, they're still in this year's Canadian Championship. As I said, it's still early days for the CPL, but Forge have set quite a bar for the other teams in the league.
Forge win 3-0 at home to take their series against Guaplies 4-3 on aggregate. Forge move on to the semi-finals of the CONCACAF league and, perhaps more importantly, qualify for next year's CCL. For the first time we will have to Canadian teams in the CCL.
Having advanced to the semis and secured at spot in next year's CCL, Forge tie the home leg 2-2 against Montagua with some very late game heroics. Not an optimal start for Forge to give up two away goals before having to travel to Honduras. That said, this is a team that has demonstrated that they will never quit until the final whistle is blown. A win is all they need and it is certainly possible for them.
A 0-0 draw away in Honduras and Forge fall on away goals. The team, and Canadian soccer fans, are surely disappointed not to make the final but it was a strong tournament for Forge. They pushed deeper into the bracket than ever before and came very close to making the final. For me, the fact that they qualified for next year's CCL is a bigger deal than actually winning the tournament would have been. A big well done to the flagship CPL franchise!