MIAMI, Florida – The second leg matches of the Round of 16 of the 2021 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League continued on Wednesday with some very exciting action in the three games.
Here are five takeaways from Wednesday’s contests:
Toronto FC’s youth steps up
While Toronto FC’s two goals in the 2-1 win over Club Leon may have come from a pair of veterans in 29-year-old Patrick Mullins and 33-year-old Justin Morrow, it was two youngsters who set the table at the decisive moment on the two goals. Mullins’ push into net would not have happened without the surgical cross played in by 21-year-old attacker Jacob Shaffelburg, while Morrow’s key second strike was the end product of a pass crafted by 18-year-old Ralph Priso. At the crucial moments of Wednesday night’s affair, Toronto FC’s young players stepped up.
Michael Bradley as important as ever
Providing balance to Toronto FC’s youth-inspired victory against the Liga MX side was another complete performance from veteran MF Michael Bradley. The 33-year-old United States international just seems to get better with age and time and his calm leadership in the Toronto FC midfield allowed the Canadian side to nail down the victory. Bradley’s play was a big reason why Toronto FC reached the 2018 SCCL Final and there is no reason why he could not lead the MLS side to another win against Liga MX opposition in the next round versus Cruz Azul.
Philadelphia shows off explosive attack
The Philadelphia Union were one of the highest scoring teams in MLS during the 2020 season, with 44 goals in 23 regular season matches, tops among all sides in the Eastern Conference. The Union’s ability to strike quickly had not been seen yet in their Round of 16 series against Saprissa going into the second half of Wednesday’s second leg, but then in an eight-minute span they struck for three goals to pave the way for their 4-0 victory. The Union’s explosive attack will be something to watch for in their quarterfinal series against Atlanta United.
Union coach Curtin off to perfect start
For many coaches, a first time managing in the SCCL ends up with some hard lessons learned, but for Union Head Coach Jim Curtin, it is so far, so good. Not only did he guide Philadelphia to a first ever SCCL and then win his first SCCL series, but his team did so in impressive fashion, with a 5-0 aggregate victory against SCCL stalwarts Saprissa. It is not often that a coach debuts in the SCCL with two clean sheet victories, but Curtin seems to have the right touch.
Olimpia make history in the Azteca
Olimpia’s 2021 SCCL campaign came to an end on Wednesday night with a defeat to Mexico’s Club America 2-2 on aggregate via the away goal tiebreaker. Nevertheless, Olimpia did make history in Wednesday’s second leg 1-0 victory as they became the first team to defeat Club America in a SCCL knockout round match in the famed Estadio Azteca of Mexico City. Coincidentally, in the 1985 Concacaf Champions Cup, Olimpia also defeated Club America away in a match played in Queretaro, Mexico.
