TORONTO – Sebastian Giovinco got his first taste of life in Major League Soccer, playing a big role in Toronto FC’s 3-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps last Saturday.
The performance left Giovinco’s teammates with nothing but praise for the Italian international, who spent Thursday's training session testing Joe Bendik with rocket penalties and set pieces from the corner flag. Each penalty he buried past Bendik saw Giovinco flash a wide grin and a laugh, something Michael Bradley says has become a common sight in training.
“Giovinco comes in with a smile every day,” Bradley said. “He’s enjoying every part of this new experience and everything that entails. People forget, for a guy like Seba, he’s played his entire career in Italy. He’s soaking all of this in. He’s come in with no preconceived notions of what something should be like.”
On the field, Steven Caldwell and Jozy Altidore say Giovinco offers more than just an attacking threat up top. Caldwell pointed out Giovinco’s low center of gravity and nimble footwork as being key in holding up the play, while Altidore said Giovinco provides everyone on the team with an outlet in the middle to pass into.
“When we are playing well, we’re going to be getting the ball to him more often than not to cause damage,” Caldwell said.
Added Altidore: “How he fits into the team is more important than how he fits with one guy. We saw in Vancouver, he connects well with everybody.”
Another person impressed with Giovinco is head coach Greg Vanney, who believes Giovinco will get better the more he adjusts to the travel and physicality of MLS. But, even in the early stages, Giovinco has left a strong impression on his new manager, who is now working on optimizing his tactical approach to get the most out of the Atomic Ant.
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“He wows us every day with some of the things he pulls off,” Vanney said. “He’s a clever player. A player like him, his strength is to get into little pockets, right, and to get on the ball and get on the turn and face forward. It’s getting him facing the goal. He’s a good goal scorer and a good playmaker, so for us, it’s our job to get him into areas where he can see the goal. We don’t want him facing our goal all the time, that’s for sure.”
Toronto FC next take on Columbus Crew SC on Saturday (7:30 pm ET; TSN2) in game two of a seven-game road trip. The team will look to Giovinco to impress once more, as he did against Vancouver.
“He’s come in with a great attitude, determined every day to work and to fit in with the group,” Bradley concluded. “In all ways, it’s been a great start for him.”
