They didn’t rent out a double decker bus this time.
No, when Lorenzo Insigne was announced as TFC’s big name DP signing last year the club avoided the use of props. It was probably for the best. The TFC of 2023 is much different than the TFC of 2014 was.
Then, they were coming off what was the worst two season run in league history. That record stood until FC Cincinnati “bested” it in 2021, with their third straight Wooden Spoon. The Reds are still one of only two MLS teams to finish back-to-back seasons below 30 points, a nearly impossible “accomplishment” in a league that promotes parity to the point of parody at times.
The excitement around the team had dipped to worrying levels in 2013. Even the diehards in the south end were losing patience. So, a big splash was needed. Apparently that meant double decker buses to then president Tim Leiweke. So, double decker buses it was.
It worked. The buses, anyway. The actually signing, Jermain Defoe, seems more like a fever dream now. He only made 19 appearances. My personal memory of his time in Toronto was watching him miss a penalty while standing directly behind the goal. His eyes had the look of a man who wanted to be anywhere other than on that pitch, in that city, playing for that team, at that time.
He was back to England shortly after. Six months later Jozy arrived to be the hero that delivered and that leads us to today.
See, the era that was spawned by the Defoe signing eventually lead to the treble winning team. Sure there was a bump in the road they took, but it got there in the end. That, in turn, has changed the expectations of the market. No longer will props distract a fanbase that has seen a championship. They want results.
That’s what they were promised when Insigne (and fellow Italian Federico Bernardeschi) was brought in. The fans were told to be patient for most of 2022 while they waited. Although the club never would have admitted it out loud, the playoffs were not in the cards last year. No, it was about figuring out what they had so they could bring in what they needed to compete for a trophy in 2023.
Understood in that equation was that the Italians would be front and centre in the title push. They’d have to be. The build was made around them.
That’s why rumours this week that, like Defoe before him, Insigne was already looking to leave touched a nerve with so many in Toronto. We’ve been burned before, after all.
That’s just it though. Burned, Toronto was. And it came out with the player they needed from it by not panicking at the first hint of a problem. To continue down memory lane here, then GM Tim Bezbatchenko didn’t just cave to Defoe’s wishes. No, he waited — waited a little longer than most people, myself included, were comfortable with at the time — and brought a player back that he felt could replace what Defoe was supposed to bring.
You see, signings sometimes fail. Ambition, however, never does. It eventually leads to success. It does. Maybe not as quickly as some would like, but it does. And, when TFC signed Insigne, they were showing ambition. So, as long they continue to do so, it will be fine. Even if something unfortunate happens.
So, when facing this current rumour, the Reds need to react calmly. They control the asset that is Insigne. He can pout all he wants, if he wants, but that would only hurt him. If he really wants to go back to Europe then he needs to continue to produce here (he is, by the way. 6 goals and 2 assists in 12 appearances. Injuries, however…).
So long as TFC continues to show the same level of ambition that they did when they signed him then they are fine. Eventually, anyway. So, there’s no reason to panic about a random rumour out of a country where there’s a rumour like this pretty much every day.
Every day. So, I wouldn’t really put much stock in it anyway. Besides, it has already been shot down by the club and it didn’t make any sense anyway. There’s no chance that TFC would loan a DP out since they do not regain the DP slot if they do.
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The question is, does Insigne have the ambition? With Defoe, it was homesickness. And, apparently, his mother encouraged that feeling. With Insigne, who knows? Might well be that his adventure to live without the constant attention in Italy hasn't met his expectations. Maybe his wife misses her family. These factors would affect any ambition he might have had to perform well at training and on the field. Never mind the big salary; he's already a wealthy man.