TORONTO — Terry Dunfield fired a ball from 25 yards out that clipped the crossbar of an empty goal.
Toronto FC’s interim head coach jokingly celebrated the pre-training skill display before joining his players warming up on an adjacent practice field.
That brief moment of joy — arm raised, smile on his face — is one the former Canadian international is desperate to replicate for real under the bright lights.
“One thing I’ve learned through these last 10 days is I want to be a head coach,” Dunfield said Friday. “I’m clear what I want to do now.”
His audition in TFC’s big chair hasn’t gone according to plan, but Dunfield will get at least two more shots to try and get things moving in the right direction.
Handed the keys to the expensive and woefully underperforming Major League Soccer club after Bob Bradley’s dismissal late last month, the Vancouver native watched his team concede a late winner in a 1-0 home loss to Real Salt Lake on Canada Day before Tuesday’s 4-0 road drubbing at the hands of Orlando City SC.
A candidate for the full-time coaching job Toronto hopes to fill soon, Dunfield was promised a minimum four matches as part of his audition.
Now at the midway point, he knows things have to improve.
“We need to start winning,” Dunfield said as TFC prepared to host St. Louis City SC on Saturday. “It’s a good thing that the club is being held accountable by our fans, by our media, our former players.
“This is the culture we need.”
The task, however, remains daunting.
Toronto (3-9-10) has been outscored 5-0 under Dunfield, 10-1 over its last four outings, and has one victory in 13 games (1-8-4) across all competitions dating back to April.
“The basics in terms of how we want to play,” midfielder Alonso Coello said when asked about what has stood out during Dunfield’s short tenure. “Trying to create an environment of competition inside the locker room … stay united, stay together.
“And try and get this thing going.”
Dunfield, who was leading Toronto’s under-17 academy team when he got the call from club president Bill Manning after Bradley was fired June 26, said he’s been analyzing the group in hopes of finding the right formula.
“We have some real technical players, some players that are hungry to be challenged tactically,” said the 41-year-old. “Laying some foundations was important, scaffolding from there, and trying to bring them a little bit of clarity.
“Hopefully each game we’ll continue to see some growth.”
Dunfield’s task is even more of a challenge when looking at his limited squad options.
A long injury list is headlined by captain Michael Bradley, defender Matt Hedges and midfielder Victor Vazquez, while midfielder Jonathan Osorio and goalkeeper Sean Johnson are away on international duty.
Toronto, which has the highest wage bill in MLS, will also be without forward Federico Bernardeschi for the next two matches because of suspension after he was sent off against Orlando. Fellow Italian star and designated player Lorenzo Insigne missed training Friday and is listed as questionable with a lower-body injury.
“It would be easy to go there,” Dunfield said when asked about roster limitations. “But one of my learnings, just from the group, was to remain positive and not give ourselves an excuse.
“We have tons of quality.”
St. Louis, meanwhile, has shown its form on the pitch in a banner expansion season, sitting atop the Western Conference with a 11-7-2 record.
The club tabbed Bundesliga veterans ahead of its inaugural campaign, including midfielder Eduard Lowen and goalkeeper Roman Burki, while former Vancouver Whitecaps defender Tim Parker anchors the backline.
“We’re going to have to dominate the chaos,” Dunfield said of Saturday’s physical opponent. “It’ll be a little bit more of a street fight. It’ll be under the lights of BMO Field.
“It’s just the game we need.”
Despite registering a solitary victory over the last 70 days, Coello said belief remains high that Toronto, which is seven points out of a playoff spot, can turn its MLS campaign around with 12 games left in the regular season.
“Things can change very, very quickly,” said the Spaniard. “We have good players, we have a good team, we have a good roster.
“It’s up to us.”
And up to Dunfield to tie it all together in the next phase of a career that included 17 years on pitches across Europe and North America as a player, the last seven with TFC’s academy, and some time spent as a media pundit.
“Everything that’s come my way, I’ve been ready for,” he said. “Our secret sauce is this incredible team behind me. It’s not ‘The Bob Bradley Way’ or ‘The (former coach) Chris Armas Way.’
“It’s now ‘The Toronto FC Way.”’
With Dunfield, for the moment and possibly longer, leading from the front.
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