There’s a positive feeling around Toronto FC at the moment, as strong of one as there’s been all season. Can the Reds keep the good times rolling on Saturday against a New York City FC side that is winless in their last four league matches?

It’s actually a 1-2-3 record in the last six games for NYCFC in all competitions if you include a win and two losses in Leagues Cup action — a six-game span that started with the Pigeons being held to a 1-1 draw at Yankee Stadium by Toronto FC on July 31.

That result was the last in a 12-match winless streak going back to April for TFC, before last week’s seven-point gauntlet where they beat the New England Revolution and Inter Miami, with a comeback draw against Charlotte FC, down two goals and down to 10 men, in between.

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It’s remarkable how quickly the feeling around a club can totally flip, sometimes for the worst but in Toronto FC’s case for the better. Suddenly they are within a tiebreaker of the Eastern Conference playoff spots, and making a run down the stretch feels like an expectation more than wishful thinking.

They’ll look to continue their good form on Saturday in front of their home crowd, with the Canadian National Exhibition taking place around the stadium.

Daniel Salloi — who had started 20 of the prior 21 matches for TFC and was one of three players with Luka Gavran and Alonso Coello to play all 21 — drops to the bench in favour of Theo Corbeanu, while Walker Zimmerman replaces Zane Monlouis in the backline in the only other change from the Miami win.

“The mood’s been good, I think that there’s so much more belief now,” Robin Fraser said to reporters including Waking The Red on Friday. “Having guys back, the level of training has been higher, competition has made everyone play better, and as a result I think the belief is higher.

“Tack on the results of last week, that was very positive for us, the week and the way the results went. Even how the results went, where I thought we really had to grind in certainly the first two games and in the last game as well, and I just think there’s a lot of belief in the team now [from] within the team.”

As the club’s overall form picks up, TFC players are finding more confidence in each other and in themselves. That leads to a complete, well-rounded performance like the win in Miami — something they want to use going forward as proof that they can beat anyone when they execute at a high level.

Feel good, play good?

“The vibe’s been high,” added Derrick Etienne Jr. “To be able to go on the road and get a result, definitely a result that we needed to get us moving up the table, was very good, but obviously we’re not in the playoffs yet. We want to make sure that we keep that momentum going, and hopefully it’s going to carry us into the next coming games.”

After this game, Toronto FC have a week off before two more at home in a row, welcoming Robert Lewandowski’s Chicago Fire and Supporters Shield leaders Nashville SC to town for a Saturday-Wednesday doubleheader. NYCFC host Nashville at Yankee Stadium on Friday.

More to come.