Carver blasts Cunningham, Wynne
Toronto FC head coach John Carver had to believe his club had found a miracle when a loose ball sat near the goal-line just waiting to be kicked in. Forward Jeff Cunningham was right near the ball but couldn't put it in, which forced TFC to settle for a 1-1 tie against Montreal on Tuesday night. The tie cost Toronto a berth in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
"I'm thinking How has he scored 99 goals?'," Carver said of Cunningham's failure to find the game-winning goal in that late scramble. "That's what I thought. How has he scored 99 goals in this league, because, if you're a poacher and you've got desire, no matter how you put the ball over the line you put the ball over the line."
Carver repeatedly stated TFC's desperate need for help at forward, saying the team needs two new forwards to get out of its current funk.
"When we're having to depend on a 16-year-old boy to be our lead striker I think that tells you everything," said Carver, referring to Abdus Ibrahim, who started as the lone striker in Toronto's 4-5-1.
Carver didn't just bash Cunningham. He saved some venom for U.S. Olympic team defender Marvell Wynne, who played his last game before joining U.S. Olympic training camp in California.
"I had to try and get my fullbacks involved in the game to try and create something," Carver said. "Unfortunately, when the fullbacks did get into the final third the lack of quality, certainly down the right-hand side, was disappointing.
"This is a guy who's going away to play in the Olympics."