ray Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 --Pesch, Radz, DeRo, Jazic but no mention of Aguiar Players return after Osieck's departure NORMAN DA COSTA Colin Miller talks about building bridges and not knocking them down as he goes about rounding up a squad to face Finland in an international exhibition match next month. So far, the caretaker coach of the men's national team says the feedback from the players has been positive. Some of the calls he has received are from players who decided they would rather stay with their clubs than hook up with the national team because of differences with Holger Osieck, who resigned as head coach last month. Miller is running the show until the Canadian Soccer Association hires a permanent replacement, likely by December. Among those who want back in include Sheffield United striker Paul Peschisolido, midfielders Ante Jazic of Rapid Vienna and Marc Bircham (Queens Park Rangers) and defender Mark Watson of the A-League's Charleston Battery. Bircham said he would never again play for Osieck after the 2001 Confederations Cup in Japan and Watson, after earning 68 caps for his country, retired in 2001 without giving a reason. Peschisolido hasn't been called up for international duty since 2001 even though he's been available, while Jazic was ignored after one match in 1999. Jazic said he would like to be part of the rebuilding program, while Peschisolido made no bones about his relationship with Osieck. "I didn't see eye to eye with Osieck," said the 32-year-old who scored twice against Rotherham in a league match last week. "I love playing for my country, everyone should. I got a phone call to ask if I wanted to play again and I'm happy to be back in the team.'' Miller is familiar with Peschisolido and Watson having played with both during the latter part of his career which saw him capped 61 times by Canada. "I obviously know them well. I know that they wear their hearts on their sleeves and rally the troops when the going gets tough.'' Barring injury, Peschisolido and Watson will be included in the squad along with Jazic. But Bircham will have to wait a little longer before getting back into the fold as Division Two Queen's Park Rangers play Brentford on Oct. 11, the same day Canada meets the Finns in Tampere. "I spoke to Marc and he said that while he is desperate to get back on the national team, he will have to sit this one out as his team is chasing promotion,'' said Miller. The other good news for Miller comes from Everton where disgruntled striker Tomasz Radzinski has said that he is more than willing to get back to the national squad. The inclusion of Radzinski, Peschisolido and Dwayne De Rosario gives Miller a top-notch strike force against the Finns. The coach scouted Finland in their 1-1 tie against Wales in a Euro 2004 match at Cardiff earlier this month and realizes that Canada faces an uphill task. While Miller will likely just coach one more game before handing over the reins to the new man, he says his main focus is set on preparing the team for the 2006 World Cup qualifiers that begin early next year. Although that means he will field established players, Miller says promising youngsters will also be brought in. During his 18-year professional career, Miller played for Scottish clubs Glasgow Rangers, Hearts and Dunfermline before managing Hamilton. So he has the experience and now the overwhelming support of the players to get Canada's men's team back on track, at least for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 I hate to sound cynical, but a backline that includes Fenwick & Watson could be our slowest ever, combined with weak passing ability by international standards. I don't really understand the need to play either for this friendly, with so many other options we need to look at first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 I think you need to try watson out, miller needs to know if watson still has what it takes to play international soccer at such a high level (especially the high caliber finnish squad ) Fenwick should not play, and maybe we will see him on the bench and maybe have marco reda play! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhat Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 quote:Originally posted by SeanKeay Fenwick should not play, and maybe we will see him on the bench and maybe have marco reda play! Maybe this is Fenwick's last hurrah ... This could be the friendly that determines which of the "veterans" still have it, as well as some of the youngsters that could showcase (Reda, Nevio, Budalic, etc). However, the scouting of the Wales games shows that Miller may be taking this friendly pretty seriously. I hope Miller takes it as a friendly to evaluate and thus sub frequently (depending on the agreement with the Finns), unlike the "departed one" ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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