5 big questions facing TFC at the start of the MLS season
How a new-look back line anchored by Walker Zimmerman will perform is one major story to watch from Toronto FC in 2026.
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A new MLS season brings renewed hope for Toronto FC after failing to reach the playoffs in each of the past five years.
A new season also brings serious questions about a team whose roster has undergone very little change during the winter.
Here are five important questions about TFC as they get set to kick off the 2026 MLS regular season this weekend away to FC Dallas.
John Molinaro
Where will the goals come from for Toronto FC?
At the risk of beating a dead horse, we have to talk about Toronto FC's anaemic attacking unit from last year. TFC had the third worst attack in MLS in 2025 with just 37 goals (down from 40 in 2024). It marked the club’s sixth worst offensive output in a 34-game season.
Deandre Kerr (four goals) and Ola Brynhildsen (two) were the only forwards to score multiple goals in MLS last season. Jules-Anthony Vilsaint had one goal. Winger Theo Corbeanu was the team’s top scorer with a paltry six goals. Incredibly, the Reds only scored two or more goals on seven occasions and went 12 consecutive matches from July 3 to Sept. 27 when they failed to score more than one goal in a game.
Before Tuesday's announcement about Emilio Aristizábal, the club hadn't made any substantive moves this off-season to bolster its attack – the only other roster additions this winter were centre back Walker Zimmerman, fullback Matheus Pereira and goalkeeper William Yarbrough.
As things stand, TFC are going into the 2026 season with virtually the same under-performing group of attackers. It's totally unreasonable to think that Toronto will suddenly have different results on the attacking end of things without the benefit of major reinforcements.
The club badly needs to sign a DP forward to strengthen the attack long before the MLS primary transfer window closes on March 26 – and the sooner the better. They simply can't afford to let this drag on for much longer.
John Molinaro
Will the Josh Sargent transfer deal get done?
Toronto FC tabled an $18 million US transfer bid for Norwich City and U.S. international striker Josh Sargent. But thus far, the two sides haven't come to an agreement.
Sargent, 25, refused to play in Norwich City's 5-1 FA Cup victory over Mansfield last month after telling the Championship side he wanted to leave. Ever since, he's been benched by Philippe Clement and has trained with Norwich's youth team.
German club Wolfsburg was reportedly set to pay a $28 million US transfer fee to Norwich for Sargent in the summer of 2024. But Sargent turned down the offer after agreeing to personal terms with Wolfsburg. If that $28 million figure is what Norwich is still after for Sargent, then TFC are going to have to pony up $10 million more to get him.
Toronto GM Jason Hernandez previously said that securing a DP attacker is a top priority this season. Sargent would fit that bill as he has 56 goals in 157 games for Norwich since joining the club in 2021. Previously, Sargent scored 11 goals in 83 games across all competitions for Borussia Dortmund of the Bundesliga. Sargent also has 29 caps for the U.S. senior side with five goals and one assist.
The English transfer window closed earlier this month, which effectively prohibits all clubs in England from adding players to their rosters via transfer deals. However, the MLS primary transfer window opened on Jan. 26, and it doesn’t close until March 26. During that time, MLS clubs can make trades with each other, as well buy players from teams abroad.
TFC continues to talk to Norwich about a deal for Sargent, who is under contract t the Canaries until 2028. But will a deal eventually get done? And if so, when?
Connor Southwell is the chief football reporter who covers Norwich City for Norwich Evening News. In a recent one-on-one interview with TFC Republic, Southwell said he believed that Norwich will continue to hold a firm line over its transfer evaluation of Sargent, rather than sell him off at a reduced rate.
"I think Norwich have got to be really strong on this, and it's got to be, 'No, Josh, you leave on our terms, or you don't leave at all.' So, that's going to be the challenge. And I suspect ultimately it will come down to money, and how much Toronto FC are willing to put on the table. I don't think they're anywhere near where they would need to be at the moment to get Norwich to a place where they would accept a transfer offer. I think it would have to require a lot of work," Southwell explained.
John Molinaro
What kind of impact will Djordje Mihailovic make?
Jason Hernandez went straight to work on rebuilding his roster shortly after the departure of Italian DPs Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi last summer by pulling off a blockbuster trade.
U.S. midfielder Djordje Mihailovic joined TFC via a cash-for-player swap ($8 million US) with the Colorado Rapids last August to become the club's new marquee DP.
Mihailovic hit the ground running in Toronto by collecting an assist in a 1-1 draw away to the Philadelphia Union on Aug. 9 in his debut. He went on to score four goals and four assists to close out the campaign with the Reds. His eight goal contributions in just 10 games tied him for the club lead with Theo Corbeanu (32 games) and Bernardeschi (15).
Now Mihailovic, still only 27, has had the benefit of an off-season to rest and a full pre-season training camp with TFC to work on building proper on-field relationships with his new teammates. As such, expectations of the club's DP will be even greater.
Coach Robin Fraser has said he wants to see improved “team ideas” this season around Mihailovic, ensuring that he gets the ball in certain areas of the pitch and that certain runs are happening in front of him.
“I certainly expect that Djordje is going to be a huge, huge contributor to us on the attack. His brain works so fast, and he's able to pull off things in one touch that a lot of guys can't really do in two or three touches. And I do think that his ability to speed up the attack, knowing when to speed up the attack is really important,” Fraser explained.
“He's such a good shooter from distance; that in and of itself opens up things for us. And his ability to carry the ball and carry by people and create numerical advantages, I think is also really exciting. And he just has a really good understanding of how to attack.”
How Fraser deploys Mihailovic could go a long way in determining the kind of impact he'll have for Toronto in 2026, whether he's used as a playmaking left winger or as a traditional No. 10 where he would play centrally.
John Molinaro
Will the defence come together under Walker Zimmerman?
Toronto had one of the worst defensive records in MLS in 2024 when it conceded a whopping 61 goals. But Robin Fraser’s emphasis on defensive solidity and being a team that makes it hard for opponents to break down paid off huge dividends as the Reds gave up just 44 goals in 2025 (tied for seventh best in MLS).
That was a difference of 17 goals, which represented the second-best defensive improvement in club history (behind the 19 fewer goals they coughed up in 2016). The team's defensive turnaround was all the more amazing when you consider the litany of injuries Fraser had to deal with and how he was routinely forced into playing guys out of position in the back line.
The bad news for TFC is that three fourths of its starting back line from last year are gone. The club declined its 2026 contract options on Sigurd Rosted, Kevin Long and Raoul Petretta at the conclusion of last season, which means Fraser will have to go with a completely new centre back pairing in the back four.
One of those spots will be filled by Walker Zimmerman, who joined the Reds as a free agent this winter. Few other defenders in the league can match Zimmerman's impressive resume – he was twice voted the MLS Defender of the Year (2020 and 2021) and has been named to the MLS Best XI on five occasions (2019 to 2023).
Zimmerman, a 32-year-old from Georgia, has proven to be a durable work horse during his career, but he did miss a lot of time last year due to a concussion, a knee injury and national team duty. So, it'll be interesting to see if he can be a steadying presence in TFC's back line and whether the team's other young defenders will grow while playing alongside him.
Being told towards the end of last season by Nashville SC that he wasn’t in the club’s long-term plans gives him extra incentive to perform at his best for Toronto.
“It was a little bit of a tumultuous 2025 for me. I had two injuries that sidelined me for a little bit of time, with a concussion and a knee, and kind of got back into form as [Nashville] hit around the playoffs. And it became clear as we were ending the season, that it was something that they were looking to change,” Zimmerman admitted.
“That came as a little bit of a surprise, but immediately, it put a chip on my shoulder. … The idea that Nashville was moving on, they put a spark in me that I'm ready to compete at my best and hopefully continue to improve and evolve.”
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Is Luka Gavran ready to be a starter in MLS?
The off-season departure of Sean Johnson left a gaping hole in Toronto FC's roster, especially after the U.S. international's MVP season for the Reds in 2025.
Rather than make a move for an MLS-proven goalkeeper, TFC have decided to go with Luka Gavran, who served as Johnson's understudy for the previous two and half seasons.
It's a big step for Gavran, a 25-year-old native of Hamilton, Ont., who patiently bided his time while Johnson served as the club's No. 1 goalkeeper. Since graduating from TFC 2 to the first team in 2023, Gavran has played in just 21 games in all competitions – he only made four appearances last year.
Except for a few hiccups, Gavran has shown well across the limited opportunities he's had to showcase himself. But his lack of first team experience is noticeable which could be amplified this season while playing behind the team's new-look back four.
It’s been a long time coming for Gavran to get this chance to show he’s ready to be an MLS starter. But that chance also comes with a big responsibility.
“I’m turning 26 this year. It's still decently young for a goalie. But this is the time where a goalie finds out is his career going to be [as] a starter? Is he going to be the guy? Or is he going to be the journeyman who was always [second choice]; content with that and fighting for minutes,” Gavran said last month.
If Gavran isn't up to the challenge, there's someone waiting in the wings to take over from him in William Yarbrough.
Yarbrough, 36, is exactly the type of goalkeeper you want backing up Gavran in his first year as an MLS starter. Born in Mexico to American parents, Yarbrough has a great deal of experience having featured for several Mexican teams, including Club León with whom he recorded 52 shutouts in 203 appearances and won two league titles. He also earned three caps for the U.S. men's senior side in 2015.
Fraser coached Yarbrough when they were together at the Colorado Rapids and won't hesitate to go to him if Gavran falters.
"I would say Will's competitive fire never burns out … He is so dialled in and such a hard worker and so good with his team and how he delivers his messages. We certainly expect it to be a good level of competition for both of them, and I think they are both going to improve because of each other," Fraser said.
(Top photo by Lucas Kschischang/Toronto FC)
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