Vilsaint scores in Toronto FC debut to tie visiting Crew 1-1

TORONTO — A pair of recent transactions paid immediate dividends for Toronto FC on Saturday.

Canada’s Jules-Anthony Vilsaint scored a late equalizer off a feed from fellow newcomer Djordje Mihailovic as TFC earned a 1-1 Major League Soccer draw with the Columbus Crew at BMO Field.

Mere moments after stepping onto the pitch for his team debut, Vilsaint, wearing No. 99, darted toward the right side of the net, accepted a long cross from Mihailovic and stuffed it into the middle of the net to level the score.

“What a start, right? You couldn’t script it any better,” head coach Robin Fraser said. “Everything that (Vilsaint) has shown so far is that he’s a really good team guy, and he gets called on today and has a job to do and he does it. You can’t really say enough about that.”

Vilsaint’s goal within three minutes of making his club debut is by far the fastest in club history. Before that, the fastest was 13 minutes, by Justin Braun on April 6, 2013.

Toronto nearly saw its draw turn into a loss four minutes after Vilsaint’s marker when Columbus midfielder Daniel Gazdag appeared to restore the Crew’s lead. However, the goal was ruled offside following a video review.

Diego Rossi opened the scoring in the eighth minute after a pass from captain Steven Moreira in the box deflected to him off TFC’s Sigurd Rosted. Rossi made no mistake, depositing the ball under the outstretched arms of TFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson for his team-leading 14th goal of the season.

Thanks to Vilsaint, who was just acquired from his hometown club on Wednesday in a deal for midfielder Matty Longstaff, TFC (5-8-13) maintained its slim playoff hopes with the late point.

Meanwhile, Columbus (13-9-5) missed the chance to leapfrog Nashville and Cincinnati, who were both idle, for second in the Eastern Conference.

The 22-year-old Vilsaint said it’s been an adjustment crossing sides in the Toronto-Montreal rivalry.

“It’s different not getting booed and stuff like that. It was so loud when I scored the goal. Just happy that they’ve got my back even though I’m from (Montreal) and I’m excited to be on that side,” he said.

He described the last two months with Montreal, during which he received limited playing time, as “hard.”

“I was just waiting for an opportunity to show myself, show my talent, show that I can contribute and help the team get some type of results. So just happy and blessed to get that here and can’t wait for the next upcoming games,” Vilsaint said.

It was Mihailovic, the 26-year-old from Jacksonville, Fla., who arrived in Toronto with more fanfare as the team’s lone designated player in the wake of the departure of Italians Federico Bernardeschi and Lorenzo Insigne.

Mihailovic came to TFC from the Colorado Rapids in a cash deal earlier in August worth up to US$9 million and signed a contract through the 2028 season with a club option for 2029.

Vilsaint said Mihailovic made his first TFC goal easy.

“Obviously he’s a really quick passer so when he got the ball back I just put my hand up and the ball came right in-between my feet and scored that goal,” he said.

From the sidelines, Fraser was also wowed by Mihailovic’s moxie to find Vilsaint.

“The service for the goal was absolutely fantastic. Things flash through your mind and as soon as I saw that ball, (I thought, he’s) worth every penny,” Fraser said.

Johnson made a pair of clutch stoppage-time saves to preserve the draw, which marked the second straight game in which TFC earned a late tie against a top opponent. The Canadian side also battled the league-leading Philadelphia Union to a 1-1 result one week earlier.

It was Mihailovic who set up the equalizer in that match, too.

“I think the group is playing with more confidence offensively and I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that Djordje’s really clean (with the ball),” Fraser said.

Still, it wasn’t just Vilsaint and Mihailovic who worked to earn the point. Johnson made six saves, and striker Deandre Kerr had plenty of chances around the net.

Fraser credited the team as a whole for its level of fight over the past two matches against top-tier opponents.

“They’re just much more cohesive than they have been, even compared to the early part of the year,” he said. “We need three points, we know that. Disappointed that we didn’t get three points. Really, really proud of the effort to come back and keep pressure on them.”

Columbus’ Jacen Russell-Rowe, a Toronto native, entered the game for the Crew to begin the second half.

The match marked Toronto’s first home game since July 12 when it hosted Atlanta in a 1-1 draw.

UP NEXT

Columbus: Hosts the New England Revolution on Saturday, Aug. 23.

Toronto: Visits Atlanta United on Sunday, Aug. 24.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 16, 2025.

Myles Dichter, The Canadian Press