‘Over the moon’ to be back with TFC, Edwards eager to return to playoffs

When the New York Red Bulls waived him in February after one season at the club, Raheem Edwards had no hesitation about where he wanted to go to continue his MLS career. 

“My immediate thought was Toronto FC and how do I come back. I reached out to them, and it happened pretty quickly,” Edwards told Sportsnet. 

Edwards was almost immediately picked up off waivers by Toronto, a move that reunited the fullback with his hometown club after nine years.  

Edwards, 30, first signed with Toronto in 2017, becoming the 14th player in club history to graduate to the first team from the TFC youth academy. The speedy fullback had one goal and six assists in 21 regular-season appearances that year, while also winning an MLS Cup, Supporters’ Shield and the Canadian Championship.   

He looked to have a bright future ahead of him with Toronto, but just days after winning the MLS Cup, he was selected in the 2017 Expansion Draft by LAFC, who turned around and traded him to the Montreal Impact (now known as CF Montreal). 

Edwards would ultimately play two separate stints with Montreal, while also playing for the Chicago Fire, Minnesota United, LAFC, and the LA Galaxy, where he reunited with former TFC coach Greg Vanney. But now he’s back with TFC, having made four starts while playing in six of the team’s first seven matches of the 2026 MLS season. After being suspended for last week’s 1-1 draw vs. FC Cincinnati, Edwards will be looking to return to the Reds’ lineup for Saturday’s home game vs. Austin FC.  

So, how does it feel to return to the club that gave him his professional start? 

“Oh, my god! It’s the best!” Edwards said. “Honestly, it’s the best to be back home, be back here at the club, seeing familiar faces, new faces, people that came up and down the ranks with me. It’s super, super cool. I’m over the moon to be back – not even just soccer-wise, it’s good to be back home because it’s a bonus for me and my family. I have a young family, so I’m really happy to be back.”

Now in his 11th MLS campaign, he’s learned a lot about himself from his vast travels. 

“I think I’m more of a complete player. Obviously, when I was younger, I was more erratic in terms of how I played. I think now I’m more calm and collected from playing a lot of games and having experience. I’m going in a good way, especially in this season. I’ve started off well and I just want to keep it going,” Edwards offered. 

He’s also happy about being reunited with coach Robin Fraser, who served as Vanney’s assistant during Edwards’ first tenure with Toronto. 

“The way I think about football, the way I see football, I got it from Greg and Robin. So, this is a match made in heaven for me,” Edwards stated.

For his part, Fraser is glad to have the uncompromising fullback back in the fold for Toronto. He also takes some satisfaction from hearing he and Vanney had such a profound impact on Edwards’ playing career.

“It’s great to feel we’ve influenced people to look at the game a certain way,” Fraser said.

Born and raised in Toronto, Edwards wears his heart on his sleeve when it comes to representing his hometown club. His love affair for the TFC runs deep. But he’s not above calling out the team when needed. 

After a humbling 3-0 road loss to the Whitecaps on Feb. 28, Edwards offered a public apology to TFC fans who travelled to Vancouver.  

“I’ve been around the league, so I know what good fans are. Before the game, I was walking on the street getting a coffee, and one of the fans stopped me. They traveled all the way over from Toronto just to watch an away game. I appreciated that,” Edwards said, reflecting on the genesis of his pointed post-match comments. 

“So, when we went in at halftime and we’re getting destroyed, I just thought about those fans and was like, ‘What a waste of a flight. What a waste of a ticket.’ They had to have been pretty pissed off, but that flipped the switch in all of us, and I think since then we’ve been flying.” 

Indeed, Toronto is unbeaten in five games since that loss to Vancouver, and has seemingly turned a corner. 

Edwards is eager to help guide the Reds back to the post-season this year, a goal that will still take a lot of work to accomplish. 

“I just love this club so much,” Edwards said. “If I’m playing, if I’m not playing, I just want to bring this club back to playoffs and meaningful games. A home playoff game would be perfect. 

“And I think we’re returning in that direction. I think we have a really good team, and I’m feeling something different.”

Elsewhere in MLS this weekend:  

• The Vancouver Whitecaps kick off the MLS weekend when they host Sporting Kansas City on Friday night at BC Place. This is a contest between two clubs going in opposite directions: while Vancouver (6-1-0) sits atop the overall league standings, Kansas City (1-5-1) finds itself near the bottom of the table. Vancouver has a league-best 19 goals, while Kansas City has one of the worst defensive records in the league (17 goals against) and has failed to keep a clean sheet this season. American forward Brian White has six goals in seven games for Vancouver and will be expected to run rampant against Kansas City.   

• Last-place CF Montreal (1-6-0) begins life under interim coach Philippe Eullaffroy when it hosts the New York Red Bulls at Stade Saputo on Saturday afternoon. Montreal fired coach Marco Donadel last Sunday, less than 24 hours after suffering an embarrassing loss in their home opener to the previously winless Philadelphia Union. Montreal beat New York 3-0 earlier this season, so perhaps this game will be somewhat of a soft landing for Eullaffroy. But then again, considering how awful Montreal has looked — just eight goals scored and 19 against — they can’t take anything for granted. 

• Speaking of new coaches, Inter Miami visits the Colorado Rapids on Saturday afternoon for their first game since Javier Mascherano’s shocking resignation earlier this week. Fellow Argentine Guillermo Hoyos has taken over as interim coach of Miami, which is off to a 3-1-3 start and sits third in the Eastern Conference. Hoyos shares a longstanding relationship with Lionel Messi, who has five goals in six starts this year for Miami, dating back to their days together at FC Barcelona.