"This is a different Canada" - Surging Canucks to challenge Socceroos
MONTREAL, Canada – Riding a record-setting three-game winning run against European opposition, having climbed to an all-time FIFA ranking high, and preparing to serve as one of three co-hosts of the FIFA World Cup next year, Canadian men’s national team coach Jesse Marsch has made one thing very clear ahead of his side’s clash with Australia this Friday evening. This is a different Canada from the one you’re used to.
Ending a 36-year World Cup qualifying drought, finishing fourth at the most recent Copa América, and having difference-makers such as Juventus’ Jonathan David and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies at their disposal, Canada is experiencing something of a golden footballing generation heading into the World Cup.
Last month, goals from Jonathan David, Ali Ahmed, and Niko Sigur lifted the Canadians to a 3-0 victory over Romania in Bucharest, before a lone strike from Derek Cornelius secured a 1-0 win over Wales in Swansea. Combined with a 4-2 win over Ukraine in Toronto back in June, it represented the first time the side had downed European foes in back-to-back-to-back games.
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Their subsequent move up to 26 in the latest iteration of the FIFA World Rankings, meanwhile, one behind Australia, also represented another high-water mark for the Northern nation.
For a nation whose national obsession is hockey and that has traditionally struggled to make any kind of notable impact on the world stage, it’s a rather new phenomenon. And reactions to it, from rivals pessimistic that a Canadian team could challenge the traditional order, have served to provide their own form of motivation.
“After we beat Romania, the Romanian coach [Mircea Lucescu]went out in the media and said, ‘Well, their players, most of them aren’t Canadian’. It was his way of making an excuse as to why they lost so poorly, so heavily to Canada.
“After we beat Wales, the coach [Craig Bellamy] went out in the media and made up some ridiculousness about we were celebrating, because he was trying to take away from the fact that they lost to Canada.
“But the point is that this is a different Canada, right? This is a talented Canada. This is a team that doesn’t fear anyone right now.”
The Socceroos, for their part, aren’t the sort to overlook the Canadians – themselves familiar with what it’s like to be judged less on your ability than perceptions of your nation’s footballing pedigree.
Further, with the FIFA World Cup just nine months away and a rare opportunity to familiarise themselves with the local conditions while facing off with two of the three host nations, there are plenty of reasons for Tony Popovic and his staff to key in on this fixture.
“They’re a quick side,” assistant Hayden Foxe explained. “They’ve got a side that’s got a lot of players that are playing in the top leagues of Europe. So this is going to be good. You look at these two tests now [against Canada and the United States in October], like playing the Japan and Saudi games.
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“That’s the level of physicality and technical ability of players; they’re both very good sides. They’re going to be good opponents. So how can we then improve and have more moments of us on the ball, creating good opportunities against these types of nations? That’s what we want. That’s what we want to see.”
Of course, with the opportunity to bring the world’s biggest sporting event to their backyards now less than a year away, Marsch was quick to note his side doesn’t require a level of disrespect to function.
“We still have to maintain, internally, real hunger and drive to continue to improve and be our best,” he said. “Because the minute that we start to feel like we’re doing well and things are going well, that’s when you can slip up.
“So I’m continuing to feed the hunger and demand more and more from them, because that’s what we need to be at our best. Of course, there are ways of looking at outside motivation as ways to inspire us. But we don’t need any more motivation than a home World Cup in nine months.
“None of us wants to let each other down, and we certainly don’t want to let the country down. We want to do everything we can to prepare to light the nation on fire and to shock the world as to the team that we believe that we are and can be. That is our total motivation, and it’s magnificent. What a magnificent challenge.
“We’ve done even a lot of things internally to continue to build the unity of the group, the communication of the group, the personality of the group, because in the end, those things -- not just the football talent and the football idea that we’re building but this idea of personality and leadership and savviness and understanding moments – this will be a big determining factor in how successful we are next summer, when the lights are on as bright as they could possibly be.
“And I want to make sure that this team is not only prepared and doesn’t shy away from it, but relishes it; looks forward to the pressure, looks forward to the opportunity, and is ready to seize it at every moment.”
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