For the first time since May, MLS is back on the docket.
It's back with a bang, too, as a handful of rivalry games mark the end of the near-two-month break the league took for its World Cup break.
Of course, the Canadian Classique is one of those key rivalries across MLS, and Thursday's match at Stade Saputo will be the first of two meetings in 2026 between the iconic Canadian rivals.
Toronto and Montréal may have been lacking in the on-pitch talent department in recent years, but that hasn't stopped these matchups from being heated. These sides sit tied on 14 points in 14 games so far this season, and both will be looking to get a step on their rival to climb back into the race for the last playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
Recent meetings
In the past two seasons, the Classique has had a much stronger Torontonian flavour to it.
The Reds ended a five-game Montréal winning streak in the derby with an emphatic 5-1 win at BMO Field in May 2024. In the last five meetings, TFC has won three, drawn one, and lost one (albeit on penalties in the Canadian Championship) against their fiercest rivals.
Really, these wins have served more as moral victories for a Toronto side that has comfortably missed the playoffs for five straight seasons now, but it's no secret the end of the Italian era brought a good bit of success for TFC.
That being said, both sides look very different than they did even 12 months ago, and last August's 1-1 draw in Toronto with the sides trading late goals might be signifying the tides beginning to shift again.
Thursday's match will mark Montréal interim manager Philippe Eullaffroy's first time managing a Classique, while TFC coach Robin Fraser will be in charge of his fourth.
How Montréal enter the match
The Impact come in after a pair of somewhat shaky 2-1 wins over Vancouver FC in the Canadian Championship, which was enough to see the team advance to the semifinals.
While things started brightly under Eullaffroy after a calamitous start to the year that cost now-former manager Marco Donadel his job, form was slipping a bit heading into the break with a pair of draws and a home loss to Chicago leaving the bleu-blanc-noir four points out of a playoff spot.
A 4-4 draw away to DC United was the last of those fixtures, with two stoppage-time goals from Montréal miraculously tying a game that had seemed lost. That left everyone heading to vacation in a good mood, but the team still did concede four to a pretty subpar DC team that currently holds the final playoff spot.
The underlying numbers have the Impact 19th in expected goals (20.6) and 17th in expected goals against (21.2), which has them in line as a below-average team in MLS, which about lines up with their spot in the table.
As the second half of the season starts, the push will be on finding more quality in the attack outside of Prince Owusu, while ensuring the defence stays as solid as it mostly has been since the managerial change.
How Toronto enter the match
After their CanChamp crash-out to Atlético Ottawa, TFC didn't have a pair of quarterfinal games to get back into form coming out of the World Cup.
Instead, the Reds played a friendly against Halifax, which they won 3-1 in a game that was not streamed to the public.
That marked the first time Toronto FC has won a game of any kind since April 4, though it doesn't really give them any relief over their ongoing eight-game winless run in MLS play, with the loss to Ottawa in there extending that to nine.
Yes, to refresh your memory, it's been that bad for TFC. The two months heading into the break were as big of a disaster as they could've drawn up, with an unprecedented injury list turning into a spiral of losses and poor performances.
Now, the Reds must attempt to battle back into playoff positioning with four straight road games coming out of the pause before getting BMO Field back after its World Cup makeover.
If manager Robin Fraser's seat wasn't already hot, continuing to struggle coming out of this time off with more players now available will likely sink him for good. We'll see if a few more healthy bodies can help Toronto get back to the form they showed back in late March.
Availability
For the hosts, the biggest loss will be star striker Prince Owusu, who will miss the derby due to yellow card accumulation. Usual starter on the wing Wiki Carmona will also remain out due to a knee injury, while Bode Hidalgo and Josh-Duc Nteziryayo will also miss this one.
Toronto will also be down a key player due to yellow card accumulation, with captain Jonathan Osorio out due to picking up his fifth of the season before the break.
Injury-wise, the list is still long. Markus Cimermancic, Nicksoen Gomis, Nelson Palacio, Matheus Pereira and Lazar Stefanovic will miss the derby. Djordje Mihailović comes off the injured list, but doesn't seem fit to start yet.
Projected XIs
It's always a bit tough to predict starting lineups after a long layoff, but we got a few hints from Eullaffroy, saying Jalen Neal and Samuel Piette were each rested on the weekend so they'd be ready to go for this game.
For Toronto... it sort of appears they only have one midfielder available to start. It will be interesting to see how that one sorts itself out. For this exercise, usual defender Jackson Gilman, who has some experience in midfield, will get the nod from the start.
CF Montréal (4-3-3): Thomas Gillier; Luca Petrasso, Brayan Vera, Jalen Neal, Dawid Bugaj; Matty Longstaff, Samuel Piette, Victor Loturi; Noah Streit, Daniel Ríos, Hennaddiy Synchuk
Toronto FC (4-2-3-1): Luka Gavran; Raheem Edwards, Walker Zimmerman, Zane Monlouis, Richie Laryea; Alonso Coello, Jackson Gilman; Derrick Etienne Jr., Dániel Sallói, Theo Corbeanu; Josh Sargent
Game information and how to watch
📆 Thursday, July 16, 2026
⏰ 7:30 pm ET / 4:30 pm PT
📺 Apple TV, TSN, RDS
🧑⚖️ Guido Gonzalez Jr.
🏟 Stade Saputo, Montréal, Canada
