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Bradley and Johnson both out 6 weeks for TFC

Toronto FC (TFC) have announced that they will be without Michael Bradley and Will Johnson for 6 weeks after they both sustained knee injuries last week.

This week has become a bittersweet one for Toronto FC fans.

Just days after shocking the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Amway Canadian Championship with a 95th minute goal in the second leg of the final allowing them to win, the team has announced that they will be without two of their best midfielders, Michael Bradley and Will Johnson, for 6 weeks.

Michael Bradley will be sidelined because of a knee sprained he suffered while on international duty with the USMNT. It happened during the third place game in the Copa America Centenario, in which the US lost 1-0 to Colombia. Bradley is the glue in the center of midfield for TFC, starting in all of his 12 appearances this season.

Will Johnson will be out after suffering a tibial plateau fracture in the second leg of the Canadian Championship. If the win that gives TFC placement into the 2017-2018 CONCACAF Champions League is bittersweet for fans, it is especially bittersweet for Johnson. Johnson was the one who scored in the 95th minute for TFC to win them the title, but he suffered the fracture on that play. Johnson has 18 appearances this season, with 3 goals and 2 assists across both the ACC and MLS play.

These two injuries leave TFC extremely thin in the midfield department, which means the whole team will have to step up and perform well to keep them in the playoff hunt. It also comes right off the news that Clint Irwin, their starting goalkeeper, is also out 6 weeks because of an injury suffered in their 3-2 loss at OCSC last week.

The season has been less than stellar for the Canadian club with them currently sitting at 7th place in the Eastern Conference. While they have underperformed to this point, they will have to come together if they want to be a team in the playoff picture. In the MLS teams usually aren’t counted out of the playoffs this early, but fast forward six weeks to mid August and you can start making some solid predictions.

This means that even though they are missing their two best midfielders and their starting goalkeeper, they are going to have to be in form these next 6 weeks. They will have to protect BMO field and try to pick up points on the road so when they are full power again they can make that playoff push.

Hopefully for TFC fans, the Canadian Championship won’t be the last thing worth celebrating for the club this season.

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