SoccerToronto FC savour the moment

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What just happened? We may just have witnessed the finest week in the history of Toronto FC. Either that or they survived against a pre-season Honduran team and wobbled before beating one of the weakest clubs in Major League Soccer.

Whatever your view, the week's significance cannot be ignored. In the space of four days the Canadian champions booked their berth in the group stages of the CONCACAF Champions League and inched closer to the MLS playoffs for the first time.

This is not a team which has gained a reputation for resilience in its formative years. Perhaps, just perhaps, that is beginning to change. Any manager knows success, however you measure it, must be founded on the rule that your team is hard to beat.

Preki is starting to deliver on that principle. The performances against Motagua and Chivas USA may have been nerve jangling for the fans, but ultimately Toronto FC got the job done. Slowly but surely opponents are waking up to the fact that this team is no longer a soft touch.

Motagua are preparing for a new season. Toronto FC may have caught them at a good time but the Hondurans are not a bad team. A little rusty round the edges, but this is a club which provided five players for the national team's return to the World Cup.

Many doubters

Few believed TFC had a realistic chance in the decider. Even fewer believed after Amado Guevara punished his old club early in the game. But despite the early setback combined with travel difficulties and a hostile crowd, Toronto rose, admirably, to the occasion.

Chivas USA were on a roll when they arrived in Canada. Certainly coach Martin Vasquez has faced many challenges re-shaping Preki's old team but recent results were encouraging. The Goats had just beaten Columbus and had earned four points from six in their previous two road games.

Plenty worried Toronto would be flatfooted after the midweek excursion. Plenty more were pleasantly surprised to see them two goals up and in control well before the interval. Chivas were given a lifeline with a second-half penalty but once again the TFC back-line held firm.

The last line of that back-line is emerging as a star of the future. Swiss born Stefan Frei is a hugely promising goalkeeper, years away from his peak. From his first day as a rookie, Frei has been an excellent shot stopper but a top 'keeper needs more than agility.

The 24-year-old has added communication, distribution, bravery and decisiveness to his resume and his individual contributions of late have been top drawer. There is little doubt he is currently one of the leading goalkeepers in MLS; the question is for how long?

Given his present rate of growth in the professional ranks, his days are surely numbered. Frei can clearly handle most of what MLS cares to throw at him - and I believe it will not be long before he is tempted to test himself at the next level.

Lure of Europe

Europe will come calling and Frei will ultimately find the lure impossible to resist. Sooner or later the carrot will be dangled and a decision will have to be made. I have no doubt Mo Johnston drafted Frei in full knowledge that eventually the kid would make money for the franchise.

That day may be drawing near. It was at about this time in his second pro year that Johnston sold Maurice Edu to Rangers for $5 million. The European transfer window closes at the end of the month and Frei is all the more attractive since he does not require a European work permit.

I would be surprised to see Frei leave at this moment and, frankly, there is no rush. He could play in MLS for another couple of years and then make the move when he is closer to the finished article. At the age of 26 or 27, he could still enjoy a decade or more playing in Europe.

Brad Guzan was rated as the top young goalkeeper in MLS when he was snapped up by Aston Villa two years ago. He has since made one Premier League appearance and was an unused substitute at the 2010 World Cup. His three-and-a-half years with Chivas USA mean little or nothing overseas.

Frei, good as he is in MLS, would likely suffer a similar fate in Europe. Depending on his choice of destination, the Toronto keeper would have to bide his time and learn his trade all over again in a very different and highly competitive environment.

For the time being he's an increasingly big fish in a relatively small pond. Like any competitive, professional athlete, Frei wants to be the best and that is the way it should be. I just hope, for his sake, Frei thinks long and hard before taking the next step.

In any event, he has plenty on his plate. The likes of Thierry Henry and Juan Pablo Angel will be hungry to test those razor sharp reflexes when Toronto FC visits New York on Wednesday.

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