Toronto FC general manager Hernandez and players reflect on another losing season

TORONTO — There were several common talking points Tuesday as some of Toronto FC’s high-profile players weighed in on another disappointing year.

Playing on the back foot instead of the front. Playing not to lose instead of to win. And playing to the opponent’s style rather than their own.

TFC (9-13-12) finished 12th in the Eastern Conference standings and missed the playoffs for a sixth straight season.

“I don’t think we really found an identity of how we wanted to play, what kind of team we wanted to be this year,” said midfielder Djordje Mihailovic.

Head coach Robin Fraser and three assistants were let go Monday, two days after a season-ending 4-1 loss at Philadelphia.

“Clearly we didn’t meet our objectives,” said general manager Jason Hernandez. “I believe this year we should have taken meaningful strides from a first-team performance perspective, and we only took marginal strides.

“I think that’s the long and the short of it.”

Injuries were a factor at times, but even when healthy, the club too often lacked spark. Allowing late goals in matches proved costly as three-point wins became one-point draws.

The team showed fight in recent weeks and displayed its tenacity with some comeback results. However, a 4-2 road loss against Columbus on Oct. 24 essentially sealed the club’s fate.

A 2-1 home victory over D.C. United the next week provided a glimmer of hope, but the 3-1 loss in Atlanta that followed eliminated Toronto from playoff contention.

“I think the story of the season is that I felt like we could never take control of games to get full points,” said midfielder Jonathan Osorio.

The search is underway for Fraser’s replacement. Toronto will open the 2027 sprint season on Feb. 20 at Atlanta United.

“We have a lot of players that probably need to step up that didn’t,” said forward Josh Sargent. “All of us as a group just didn’t do well enough. It wasn’t good enough from us this season.”

Sargent, a former Norwich City striker who joined the club as a designated player last March, overcame a slow start to lead the team with 10 goals, one more than fellow newcomer Daniel Salloi.

Mihailovic, who joined the team as a DP last year after TFC moved on from former designated players Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi, was held to three goals over an injury-riddled campaign.

Focusing on the attack could be a “point of emphasis,” Mihailovic said, when the pre-season begins this winter.

“We see it in the locker-room and we talk amongst each other; we know how good we can be,” he said.

It was a complicated schedule for Toronto FC as BMO Field hosted six games during the FIFA World Cup.

The Reds dropped their first two games on the road and didn’t take full advantage of a nine-game homestand that started in mid-March. The long stretch at home started well but closed with two losses and four draws.

After the break, Toronto was winless over four games in July. The team tried to play catch-up the rest of the way and couldn’t establish any momentum.

“Too many times we tried to switch how we want to play based on the opponent,” Salloi said. “I think we have enough talent on the team where we should really develop how we want to play and how we want to beat teams.”

Osorio, who picked up a minor injury late in the season finale, felt there was a bit of a disconnect offensively.

“Not everybody is able to be on the same page because we don’t really have that clear picture for everybody,” he said. “So that made it hard.”

Toronto’s last post-season appearance was a first-round loss to Nashville SC in November 2020.

The upcoming truncated campaign and playoffs will precede a full 2027-28 regular season beginning in July. MLS is moving to a summer-to-spring format that’s in line with other major leagues.

The pressure will be on Hernandez, who has served as GM since June 2023, to hire a coach with a philosophy that allows the players to shine.

Hernandez will be looking for a leader and a “voice with energy,” he said.

“I think the feeling in the locker-room is that we have a really good roster and we want to be the ones to go after games,” Osorio said. “I feel like that’s going to be our focus moving forward.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2026.

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press