Toronto FC (3W-3L-5T, 14 points) battled to a 1-1 draw against the Western Conference and Supporters’ Shield leaders San Jose Earthquakes (9W-1L-1T, 28 points) on Saturday afternoon, courtesy of Dániel Sallói’s early goal in their True North Match at BMO Field.
Prior to kick-off, Toronto FC and BMO formally handed the keys of the stadium over to Canada Soccer in a pre-game ceremony featuring Kevin Blue, CEO & General Secretary of Canada Soccer, Catherine Roche, CMO of BMO, Jason Hernandez, TFC General Manager, and Jimmy Brennan, TFC alumni ambassador, former club captain, and Canadian international as part of the club’s True North Match celebrations.
TFC Head Coach Robin Fraser made three changes from his side against Atlanta United last weekend with Lazar Stefanovic, Markus Cimermancic and Malik Henry coming in for Benjamín Kuscevic, José Cifuentes and Josh Sargent.
The Reds flew out of the traps and opened the scoring early against the league leaders, as Dániel Sallói curled home past San Jose goalkeeper Daniel following a neat midfield link-up between Markus Cimermancic and Jonathan Osorio in the build-up.
The strike, just 110 seconds after the opening whistle, marked Sallói’s team-leading fourth goal of the season and Cimermancic’s first assist for Toronto FC.
San Jose Earthquakes equalized in the 13th minute, when Preston Judd turned home Niko Tsakiris’s free-kick.
Toronto FC II defender Micah Chisholm, who signed a Short-Term Agreement with Toronto FC prior to the match, made his club debut at the start of the second half, replacing Lazar Stefanovic in the heart of the Reds’ defence.
Quakes’ Preston Judd thought he had his second of the afternoon in the 64th minute, but the offside flag denied the visitors after the forward found the back of the net from close-range.
Toronto FC came within millimetres of a late breakthrough in the 86th minute, only for Dániel Sallói’s lob, set up by Derrick Etienne’s perfectly weighted through ball, to be acrobatically cleared off the goal line by San Jose’s Reid Roberts.
Both sides exchanged goalscoring chances down the stretch, but neither could find a late winner, ultimately settling for a point apiece at BMO Field.
Next up, Toronto FC turn their focus to domestic honours as they host Atlético Ottawa of the Canadian Premier League in the 2026 TELUS Canadian Championship on Tuesday evening. The preliminary round match-up kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET at BMO Field and will be broadcast on OneSoccer across Canada.
LINEUPS
TORONTO FC – Luka Gavran; Kobe Franklin, Zane Monlouis (Walker Zimmerman 90+5’), Lazar Stefanovic (Micah Chisholm 46’),, Raheem Edwards; Markus Cimermancic (Antone Bossenberry 76’), Alonso Coello, Jonathan Osorio (C); Malik Henry (Derrick Etienne Jr. 68’), Dániel Sallói, Emilio Aristizabal (Deandre Kerr 68’)
Substitutes Not Used: William Yarbrough, Adisa de Rosario, Jahmarie Nolan, Fletcher Bank
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES – Daniel; Benji Kikanovic, Daniel Munie, Reid Roberts, Jamar Ricketts; Ronaldo Vieira (C), Beau Leroux, Ousseni Bouda, Niko Tsakiris (Nick Fernandez 54’), Jack Skahan (Ian Harkes 66’); Preston Judd (Paul Marie 66’)
Substitutes Not Used: Nathan Crockford, Dave Romney, Jack Jasinski, Max Floriani, Jonathan González, Nonso Adimabua
MEDIA NOTES
- Markus Cimermancic recorded his first assist for Toronto FC.
- Toronto FC II defender Micah Chisholm made his TFC debut as a 46th minute substitute, becoming the eighth player to debut for the Reds this season.
