Toronto FC, under new boss Bob Bradley, began work on revamping its roster Wednesday by declining contract options on five players including veteran defenders Omar Gonzalez and Eriq Zavaleta.
A shakeup in defence was not unexpected given Toronto gave up a franchise-worst 66 goals during a dismal 6-18-10 MLS campaign. As the season wore on, TFC was reduced to using captain Michael Bradley in the backline.
TFC gave up an average of 1.94 goals a game, 26th in the 27-team league.
“You’re not going to win many games when you’re letting in two goals a game,” team president Bill Manning said in his end-of-season media session last week.