TORONTO -- Toronto FC's CONCACAF Champions League hopes took a big hit after conceding two late goals Tuesday in 3-1 loss to Mexican giants Santos Laguna.
With the score tied 1-1 in the 88th minute, Santos midfielder Daniel Luduena scored to spoil Toronto's comeback and help his team take the outright lead in the group.
Candido Ramirez then killed the game off in injury time, slotting home a left-footed finish after Toronto had started pushing numbers forward in desperation.
Santos substitute Darwin Quintero opened the scoring in the 49th minute, while Toronto's Quincy Amarikwa replied for Toronto in the 68th on a night where the visitors hogged possession and dominated play against their MLS opponents.
Halfway through the four-game group stage, Santos sits atop the three-team group with six points from two games, three better than Toronto. But the Reds still face a visit to El Salvador and a difficult trip to Santos' Estadio Corona in Torreon, Mexico, where they suffered a 6-2 thrashing in April. Only the group winners advance to the next round.
Much of the pre-match hype centred around the teams' last encounter at BMO Field, when the sides played to a 1-1 tie in the first leg in the semifinal of last season's competition. That game featured an on-field melee after the final whistle that saw Quintero earn Santos' second red card of the night. A week later in Torreon, Toronto had an early 2-1 lead but the Mexicans scored five unanswered goals to run out 6-2 winners and advance 7-3 on aggregate.
This time around, Toronto will be devastated to lose what head coach Paul Mariner was calling a must-win game. But the Reds were lucky not to concede any more goals against a technically superior Mexican side.
After weathering some early Toronto attacks, the Mexicans gradually asserted themselves, dominating possession by linking together long sequences of passes. Edgar Leon was lively on the right wing while Oribe Peralta, fresh off an Olympic gold medal with the Mexican national team, gave Toronto's defenders fits all night.
Peralta scored four goals at the London Games, including two against Brazil in the final but couldn't bury his team's best chance early on. After his teammates sliced Toronto apart with a succession of backheels and short passes, Peralta was alone in front of a gaping net but couldn't connect with a simple pass in front of a yawning TFC goal in the 23rd minute.
Mariner cut a frustrated figure on the sideline, pacing and gesticulating as Santos set up camp in the Toronto half. But the match was still scoreless when the halftime whistle blew.
Quintero entered the game to start the second half and didn't take long to make his mark on the game, blasting in a powerful shot from a narrow angle past goalkeeper Freddy Hall only four minutes after coming onto the pitch. Toronto's Ryan Johnson had made an important tackle seconds earlier, but was immediately caught in possession just 20 years from his own goal.
Johnson could only watch as Santos' Marc Crosas split Toronto's defence with a delightful scoop pass to Quintero.
Minutes later, Amarikwa hit the post with an empty net in front of him. TFC kept up the pressure after that, winning two straight corner kicks, but failed to seriously test goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez.
But Amarikwa soon made up for his gaffe in the 68th minutes, smashing in a right-footed shot from 10 yards through a maze of legs after Sanchez punched away a high ball.
The crowd of 10,951 at BMO Field found its voice after Amarikwa's goal, coaxing on their team during an intense final 20 minutes. Both sides started attacking more directly, with Guatamalan referee keeping busy as the fouls picked up.
But with only minutes to play, Luduena picked up the ball 30 yards from 30 yards out, eluded TFC captain Torsten Frings and played a spectacular give-and-go with striker Peralta before beating Hall.
The Toronto 'keeper made a crucial save in the 80th minute off Luduena after Ramirez danced through two defenders inside the box, momentarily lost the ball, and then retrieved it to set up his teammate.
With the result, Toronto will be hard-pressed to advance the quarter-finals. The Reds had opened with a 5-1 win over Club Deportivo Aguila at BMO Field on Aug. 1, while Santos thumped the El Salvadoran side 5-0 in Torreon last week. While both TFC and Santos visit Aguila in September, the group will likely be decided when they meet on Oct. 24 in Mexico.
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