TORONTO — Jozy Altidore doesn't much like sharing with the media and, reading some of his past reviews, it's not hard to see why.

The burly U.S. international forward has had to deal with high expectations since turning pro at 16. And he has had to endure some harsh armchair quarterbacking.

But his interest in avoiding the spotlight off the soccer pitch is slightly more complicated.

Now 27, after stints in Spain, the Netherlands and England, he has found a home at Toronto FC. A healthy Altidore has been in beast mode the second half of the season, scoring goals and leaving a trail of bodies in his wake en route to Saturday's MLS Cup final against the Seattle Sounders.

Since July 31, Altidore has 15 goals in 20 games, including a record five straight playoff games.

And he still has little interest in talking about himself. His US$4.825-million salary may stand out, but Altidore works hard to just be part of the whole.

He shuns the spotlight.

"I just feel like what you can accomplish as a group is far greater than what you can accomplish by yourself," he told reporters at a new conference Thursday when pressed about his reticence. "And we look to a game like Saturday, individual performances don't really mean anything if we collectively don't put it together as a team."

Altidore has left his mark in record books, however.

He was the first U.S. international to score in Spain's La Liga and, in 2009 at 19, became the youngest player in U.S. national team history to score a hat trick.

His next U.S. appearance will be his 100th. He has 37 goals for his country.

Altidore is listed at six foot one and 175 pounds but looks far thicker top and bottom. He can shrug off defenders like they are cartoon characters, sending Montreal's Victor Cabrera flying during the Eastern Conference final with what he affectionately described as a "love tap."

While he can be a bull in a china shop, he has a deft touch with the ball.

"It's surprising for a big man like that to be that quick and that agile and have such good feet," said Toronto fullback Steven Beitashour.

Added defender Nick Hagglund: "You don't want to give him too much space but you also don't want to get too tight ... He can burn you with speed, he can burn you with his muscle. He's got great feet. I think he's a total package striker."

Altidore can score and play provider, and clearly enjoys combination play with Italian strike partner Sebastian Giovinco and others.

"Obviously Seba is the magician," said midfielder Jonathan Osorio. "You look for him any chance you can get. Sometimes you give it to him and get out of his way. Sometimes you give it to him and you combine. It's all different, it's moving off of him.

"It's really nice playing with Jozy because sometimes he moves off of you. And he helps me get into good positions."

Today's success is a far cry from the recent past.

He tore it up in the Netherlands, scoring 38 goals in 67 games for AZ Alkmaar. But England was a different story.

On loan to Hull, he had one goal in 28 appearances. At Sunderland, Altidore scored one goal in 42 league matches in what the Sunderland Echo called a "miserable 18-month spell."

"Altidore will surely go down in Sunderland legend as one of the club's worst ever signings," the Guardian wrote in January 2015 under the headline: "Jozy Altidore's European career: a badly advised, confidence sapping failure."

One day later, Toronto FC confirmed Altidore's acquisition.

It didn't help that manager Paulo Di Canio, who brought Altidore to Sunderland, was sacked soon after he got there. While Altidore has been nothing but classy towards his former club, he has conceded it was not the right fit.

He sees more pluses than minuses in soccer, however, although he says he wished he had enjoyed the game more as a young player.

"It too quickly became a job," he said.

Today he savours the life.

"I get to live my life as a professional soccer player, I get to live my dream ... It's a blessing to even be here today, to go out on the field and train, to be amongst these guys," he said Thursday.

Things have turned around since returning to North America.

Altidore had 13 goals in 25 games (21 starts) in 2015, his debut season at Toronto.

He missed 11 of the first 18 games this season, plagued once again by hamstring injuries. His first goal didn't come until the 21st match of the season, the start of a torrid run of eight goals in nine games. He finished the regular season with 10 goals and five assists in 23 games (16 starts).

Some saw the lack of goals early in the season as a slump. After Toronto's May 7 home opener, which was the ninth game of the season, Altidore had no goals and two assists in 473 minutes.

Asked that night about problems putting the ball in the back of the net, Altidore's response got chillier by the word.

"I'm here to win. It's one thing to come here and score goals and lose. Would you rather that? I didn't think so."

Others chose to see what he was doing off the ball, making runs to pull away defenders and set up teammates.

His fellow players see a different side than Altidore's public face, which is polite but impenetrable.

"Jozy is a great guy," said Beitashour. "You guys probably don't talk to him that much. He kind of keeps to himself a little but if you know him, you know the type of person he is. He cares about people."

Teammates also say he has a keen sense of humour and is quick to praise teammates or say something to lift the room.

"He's just one of those guys that's down to earth and you like to be around," Beitashour said.

He helps others off the field, usually outside the spotlight. The Jozy Altidore Foundation, which he founded at 19, has worked to bring clean water to Haiti. Earlier this year, it helped deliver live broadcasts to fans in Haiti of Haiti and other Copa America Centenario games.

Altidore was designated as special early on. He was just eight years old when he caught the eye of Josef Schulz, founder of the Schulz Soccer Academy. Schulz told Altidore's Haiti-born father Joseph that his son could be a world-class player.

Video back then shows a young boy with stepovers, a hard shot and a nose for goal.

Schulz died in 2013 from cancer but has not been forgotten.

"He helped me make the dream come true," Altidore told the MLS Insider.

Altidore was taken 17th in the 2006 draft by the MetroStars and wears No. 17 to this day on his jersey. He scored his first MLS goal that fall for the New York Red Bulls against the Columbus Crew, a powerful right-footed shot from just outside the 20-yard football line marked on the turf.

At 17, he was called up by the U.S. men's national team and made his debut Nov. 17, 2007 against South Africa. He scored his first goal, via header, on Feb. 6, 2008, against Mexico, and played in the 2010 World Cup.

Altidore recalled that growing up, his soccer team would huddle up and the question would be posed: "Who's the best team in the Florida?" with the kids yelling "We are." That was followed by "Who's the best team in the United States?" with the same answer.

The final part was "Where do you want to be in 10 years?"

"And we'd yell World Cup," Altidore said with a smile.

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