This is the best Jozy Altidore has ever played in his career
Jozy Altidore was supposed to be a superstar. Not just a United States national team superstar. A global superstar. He was a man child who scored nine goals for the New York Red Bulls as a 17-year-old and notched his first goal for the U.S. at 18. The striker was so good that Villarreal paid an MLS record transfer fee to sign him.
And yet he never lived up to that hype, which has dogged him his entire career. Altidore is rarely seen as great, or the best option available, or even satisfactory. Instead, he's always been seen as an underachiever -- never as good as he was supposed to be.
There might be another way to view Altidore right now, though: The best player in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Altidore has scored in all five of Toronto FC's playoff games, leading his team to the final. He's even been good with the ball at his feet, setting up teammates and his pressure from the top has been the starting point for the TFC defense. While teammate Sebastian Giovinco is still the best player in the league, even the Atomic Ant hasn't been as good as Altidore of late.
Nobody would have guessed that Altidore would be TFC's main man down the stretch either. He talked about finding the right program to stay healthy in the preseason, but he was hurt before the season even started. Another injury kept him out in the summer and by the time July 31 rolled around, Altidore hadn't scored a single goal all season. There were few Designated Players in the league who had done less than him. But it all changed on that final day of July.
Altidore got his first goal of the season that day, then added an assist in his next match. The striker then scored in four straight games and, seemingly out of nowhere, he was the league's hottest player. By the end of the regular season, he had 10 goals, all of them in the final 14 games.
Heading into the playoffs, with Altidore to lend Giovinco and Michael Bradley a helping hand, along with the Eastern Conference's best defense, Toronto FC were real MLS Cup contenders. But the way it played out was Giovinco and Bradlye lending Altidore a helping hand, and the striker helping bail out a defense that fell apart on the biggest stage.
First, Altidore scored the clincher in TFC's knockout round win by hopping on a botched clearance and bundling the ball home. Then he scored the opener against New York City FC, again benefitted from a poor clearance, but this time smashing the ball into the back of the net. His goal in the second leg of the conference semifinal against NYCFC was a beauty, as he blasted one on the half volley that left the goalkeeper no chance. He started the TFC comeback against the Impact in the Eastern Conference final with a strong header from 10 yards. Finally, he capped his playoff scoring with a beautiful snapped header on a corner kick to help TFC complete their improbable turnaround against Montreal.
Three rounds, three opponents, five matches and all Altidore did was score. He took advantage of defensive mistakes and creating goals from nothing. He did it from the run of play and on set pieces. He did it to wrap up Toronto FC wins, to start comebacks and to finish them off.
Simply put, there isn't a thing Altidore hasn't done.
Considering Toronto FC's history, it was going to take something extraordinary for them to finally break through. After all, this is a team that didn't make the playoffs in any of their first eight seasons and, until this season, had never won a playoff game. Only magic could break a hex like that. And Altidore has been magic.
So no, Altidore isn't a global superstar, but if you could forget what he was supposed to be for a minute and just look at what he is and it's hard not to be blown away. He's playing better than he ever has, and it's pretty damn good. Good enough to tear apart playoff opponent after playoff opponent and take TFC to heights they've never been.
Now Toronto FC are one win away from an MLS Cup title. And they get to go for it at home, in front of long-suffering fans who have been waiting for this moment. And, just maybe, they have a bit of confidence. It's hard not to have confidence in Altidore right now.
