Advertisement

Season finished but Man City still on the move, with Toronto FC the first stop

TORONTO - Argentine striker Sergio Aguero, Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure and England goalie Joe Hart highlight the travelling Manchester City squad due to play Toronto FC on Wednesday.

After the BMO Field game, the English team heads south to play the Houston Dynamo on Thursday before wrapping up its North American tour in New York on Saturday to watch sister club New York City FC host Houston at Yankee Stadium.

City concluded its Premier League season Sunday with a 2-0 win over Southampton, finishing second behind Chelsea with a 24-7-7 record.

With a game Thursday and having played Sunday after crossing the Atlantic, manager Manuel Pellegrini will have to use his resources carefully in Toronto.

Facing three games in a week, Toronto FC (4-5-1) is also likely to dig deep into its squad for players to face the touring side. Toronto, which defeated the Portland Timbers 1-0 on Saturday, hosts the San Jose Earthquakes on the weekend.

"Anybody who has an injury or anything that they're carrying or trying to get over, we probably won't see too much of them, if any," head coach Greg Vanney said after Saturday's game. "But I think the group will use it sort of as a training session.

"I still think there's some connections we need to continue to build on as a team out on the field ... We'll see most everybody, at least for some point, some time in the game."

Look for youngsters like Jay Chapman, Jordan Hamilton and Daniel Lovitz as well as unused veterans like Mark Bloom to see playing time.

Transfer rumours have already started swirling about Manchester City.

Spanish reports have Real Madrid set to offer 90 million euros (C$121.4 million) for Aguero, the Premier League's top scorer with 26 goals this season.

Toure's future at the club is also subject to speculation.

---

Manchester City Tour Roster

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, Willy Caballero, Richard Wright.

Defenders: Barcary Sagna, Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta, Aleksander Kolarov, Gael Clichy, Martin Demichelis, Dedryck Boyata, Pablo Maffeo.

Midfielders: James Milner, Samir Nasri, Jesus Navas, David Silva, Yaya Toure, Olivier Ntcham, Bersant Celina, Seko Fofana, George Evans, Manu Garcia.

Forwards: Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko, Wilfried Bony, Brandon Barker, Jose Pozo.