ORLANDO, Fla. - Cyle Larin isn’t quite a household name in his home town of Brampton, Ontario, just yet, but he knows he will have extra support at Toronto on Wednesday night as his Orlando team bids to keep fading playoff hopes alive (7:30 pm ET, FS1 in US | TSN4 in Canada).
The big Canadian striker has certainly made a name for himself with the Lions after shattering the rookie goal-scoring record in 2015, claiming the Rookie Player of the Year award and topping MLSsoccer.com's annual 24 Under 24 presented by EA SPORTS list this year.
Larin has continued to impress with 14 goals to date in 2016 and he knows he will be in the spotlight against the Reds, with Brampton just 26 miles away and plenty of family and friends keen to see him play. He was unable to score in his two games at BMO Field last season.
“I know there will be some Canadian fans there, but I don’t think they will be cheering for me [in this instance],” Larin said. “But I think there will be about 30 people there, my family and my friends, so there will definitely be some people to cheer us on there.
“I had a day off and was able to pay a quick trip home to Brampton, to see my family, and that was good. Sometimes other people recognize me as well, especially if I’m wearing Orlando gear. But it’s not like Toronto; it’s very relaxed.”
Larin remains an unlikely celebrity figure in his hometown and admits he is happy to stay largely unrecognized. Unlike teammate Tommy Redding, who has had a sandwich named after him in his home town of Oviedo, no-one has yet offered to do the same for the Canadian international.
“No, not yet,” he laughed. “But maybe soon! I enjoy coming home and it is always good to have the chance to play in front of family and friends.”
More importantly, Larin is well aware Orlando is fast running out of chances to stay playoff relevant after three heavy defeats in a row. If they are not quite in the Last Chance Saloon, they are certainly in the building next door, and another loss could prove fatal.
He remains encouraged, though, by the fact City has played Toronto close twice already this season, winning 3-2 at home in June but then losing a three-goal thriller to the Eastern Conference table-toppers a month ago, also at Camping World Stadium, with Larin on the scoresheet both times.
“I think the team’s still very positive,” he insisted. “We can go into this game and believe we can win. We have a great team. I believe that and everyone else here believes that. As long as we go into this game with the right mentality, we can get something out of it.”
Goalkeeper Joe Bendik is also firmly convinced the Lions are still playing for a viable postseason future, and have the ability to upset the odds against Jozy Altidore and Co.
“Obviously the first two games between the teams were really good, back and forth, with late goals, so I expect the same thing,” Bendik insisted. “After losing three games in a row, we needed to figure a couple of things out as a team, and hopefully we can show that on Wednesday.
“I think everybody else is doubting us, so that’s a very dangerous place to be because we’re playing with a lot of freedom. We’re still believing, like we’re right on the [playoff] line, and we are.”
Orlando still expect to get the best Toronto can muster, even though the team has comfortably clinched its playoff spot and could be without top scorer Sebastian Giovinco again, who has missed the last three games with a quad strain. Skipper Kaká certainly doesn’t anticipate any drop-off in effort.
“No, I don’t think so,” he insisted. “I think they want to be the first in the conference, so probably they will play hard. One good thing for us is Giovinco is out, so maybe we can take advantage of that.”
