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Canada-Haiti U-23 pre-match thread

loyola

By loyola
in Men's National Teams

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loyola Newbie

loyola

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March 14 17h30 PT, 20h30 ET

Must win match for Canada. A win combine with a Mexico win would allow us a tie in our last game.

We've defended well against Mexico but didn't build a lot. We now need to take the game to our opponent and that will be a challenge for this ill prepared team. But I've seen some good plays against Mexico so I'm confident we can do it.

Who should replace Johnson in the middle? A huge lost if you ask me as he could have his ways against weaker opponents. Gyaki? Rosenlund? Jakovic?

Wagenaar or Begovic?

Should Kambere starts? He had a tough first half but improved in the second but he's losing a lot of easy ball IMO.

Discuss.

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youllneverwalkalone Mentor

youllneverwalkalone

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I'm a little surprise we didn't see Sanchez last night as there were pretty rave reports about him over the last couple weeks. Clearly we need someone whose comfortable with the ball in that position.

Dasovic knows Kambere well and likely leans on him for some leadership/experience. His passing may not have been great but, hey, he's played under Bob Lilley the last few years. I don't recall him being beat 1v1 and he can get forward in a hurry if need be. The fullbacks will have to do better against Haiti, but they will be allowed to be more offensive. Let him get forward and he'll show something.

I'd go with Wagenaar at this point. He handled the ball well. Begovic has had some trouble in this regard.

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Tyson M Enthusiast

Tyson M

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I wouldn't recommend drastic changes, although Kambere has terrible distribution(maybe he was nervous), but after yesterday I have some trust in Dasovic(especially regarding Kambere whom he knows well through Caps stuff).

About the keeper situation, as per my prediction in the "perdiction" thread, Wagenaar stood on his head and thus we have a dilemma. I'm a Begovic fan but you have to go with the one in good form.(also in my prediction I said Ornoch would score, not a bad guess!).

About Sanchez, wasn't the knock on him that he was in bad shape, so maybe we bring him on late to replace Gyaki, who is likely filling in for Willy Johnson.

Anwyways, just my thoughts.

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Andrew W Newbie

Andrew W

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I wonder if Sanchez's Mexican heritage had anything to do with his exclusion? What I'm getting at, is Dasovic might have not wanted to put the kid in a difficult situation essentially playing against compatriots.

Just waxing poetic on that one.

I say don't mess with the lineup and put Rosenlund in where Johnson was to see how he does. However, my only trepedation is that Rosenlund is a true midfielder whereas Johnson was a withdrawn forward playing off Ornoch. To me Tyler doesn't have the pace for that. I wouldn't be averse to seeing Rosenlund come in for Ayre (whom I didn't rate poorly in terms of performance) and play in front of Hemming and have Sanchez in behind Ornoch.

I say for this one we go with:

--------------Wagenaar

Ledgerwood-Jakovic-Hainault-Kambere

-----------Hemming-Rosenlund

Ricketts------Sanchez------Lensky

--------------Ornoch

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El Hombre Grand Master

El Hombre

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quote:Originally posted by Tyson M

I wouldn't recommend drastic changes, although Kambere has terrible distribution(maybe he was nervous), but after yesterday I have some trust in Dasovic(especially regarding Kambere whom he knows well through Caps stuff).

That was the way I read his performance. You could really see him rushing things, particularly throw-ins. He'll be better this game.

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The Beaver Newbie

The Beaver

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Yeah, you guys said it, if it ain't broke...

I suspect Gyaki will get the nod to replace Johnson. Similar player in that he'll run his ass off and get stuck in for 90 minutes, and he might even create something, too. Rosenlund is a better playmaker, but he's likely not match fit.

As Ed says, our guys should only get better as the tournament wears on. Haiti will be physically tough, but I think this should suit our guys. On several occaisions last night, our guys held the ball, even in tight space, and won free kicks. If we can have similar composure and create a goal or two, we could come out with the result we need.

Vive le Canada!

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Winnipeg Fury Rookie

Winnipeg Fury

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They booed our national anthem !

Gerry Dobson:

March 13, 2008

CONCACAF COMPLICATIONS

We all agreed from the outset. With only two teams from the CONCACAF tournament qualifying for the Olympics, the United States and Mexico were both ironclad sure bets.

After all, Canada was at a distinct disadvantage. Nick Dasovic and his lads went into this thing with very little preparation since the CSA has no money. Also, his squad was also talent thin and the tournament did not fall on an international date. Therefore, the pro clubs were not obliged to release their players. That's why there's no David Edgar, Jamie Peters, or Marcel deJong. Advantage Mexico because their players nearly all play in Mexico. Advantage U.S.A. because they're so deep they don't even need their best Europeans.

So imagine our delight when Canada opened with a well earned 1-1 draw with the mighty Mexicans in a hostile environment which included the booing of our national anthem.

Welcome to CONCACAF.

And welcome to any major qualifying tournament which for many countries is next to war. The organizing committees for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers in Canada please take note. Do not cater to the opposition. Do not welcome them. They hate us. And will make our lives miserable for the return match down there.

Back to the point, which is this. The top two teams in each group cross over with the winner taking on the second place team in the opposite group. The U.S. and Mexico are the top seeds in each group. The semi-final winners automatically qualify for Bejing. You can see why finishing second is not a good thing. You get one of the top seeds in the cross over. You can also understand why the draw with Mexico was so important. Suddenly first place and a softer semi final opponent is not out of the question.

Now to the other group. Here is where it gets complicated. Cuba pulled off the shocker there by drawing the Americans. Suddenly their grip on the group seemed uncertain. Further muddling the issue was the apparent defection of as many as seven Cubans after that match. If Cuba is unable to continue, their future opponents get the automatic three points by default.

Even if they do stay in, their team is severly weakened. They will have eleven players at most. In either case, the Americans are saying, wait a minute. Everyone else gets the automatic or nearly guaranteed full points, We played a much stronger team and managed only one. Watch for the U.S. to go looking for the retro points.

Are we clear?

Either way, this tournament which once upon a time looked so predictable, is now thrown wide open.

An interesting aside regarding the Home Depot Centre where Canada's group is stationed: There will be no more than 12,000 people for week night matches. An agreement with the neighbouring university has put a cap of 12,000 people for any week night match due to noise and congestion. At least that keeps the hostility directed towards Canada to a limit. Up next is Haiti on Friday which is considered a weekend night. As there were only 9,000 for the Mexico game, it shouldn't be a problem.

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Gian-Luca Grand Master

Gian-Luca

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quote:Originally posted by Winnipeg Fury

I'm sure this has been asked along the way, but is Jacob Lensky cap tied to Canada now ?

I believe so - the only question that I'm not sure of is whether he can still change teams before he turns 21 (I believe he turns 20 this year) - not sure if he can do so after playing in an Olympic qualifier. But there's not a lot of time for him to change his mind & I don't think there are going to be many opportunities for him to be invited to a Slovak or Czech U23 camp in the available time.

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DigzTFC Apprentice

DigzTFC

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Lensky is not capped tied in a amateur tournament like the Olympics. If he doesn't claim another nationality before the age of 21 he will be capped tied to Canada. However, he can still change up until that point. Jono's dad Bobby said how playing for Holland Olympic team wouldn't effect his ability to represent Canada. But lets just keep the talk to Lensky.

Saw the game last night and Kambere cannot pass and those turnovers should have killed us but we closed down on the counter-attack so quickly. Great game by Canada. Kambere has to taken out though. He's the bigggest liability on the field besides Lombardo.

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loyola Newbie

loyola

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Here's an excellent article about Wagenaar:

http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gdi_l4mc5yOQ42UnuxL-UL_UaQMQ

Wagenaar shrugs off months of inactivity to lead Canada in draw with Mexico

CARSON, Calif. — Months of inactivity did not prevent Josh Wagenaar from achieving a moment of triumph when Canada most needed it at the CONCACAF men's Olympic qualifying tournament.

Mexico's Sergio Avila just sent a through ball to Edgar Castillo, who was dribbling alone on the goalkeeper to try to break a 1-1 tie in second-half stoppage time Wednesday night.

"I was going to come off my line and try to intercept (the ball) before he got it, and I could see that he was going to get there before me," Wagenaar said. "So I just held my line and got set. Once he took the shot, I just reacted to it."

The 23-year-old from Grimsby, Ont., deflected Castillo's seven-yard shot with his left hand to preserve the tie and ensure a much-needed point in Canada's quest to reach the Olympics.

"Josh was very solid," Canadian forward Andrazes Ornoch said. "He faced a lot of pressure and I thought he dealt very well with it. Any time we had a shot on net or go near net, he had to be aware and he was always there."

Wagenaar's big moment came after two months of relative inaction following his January release by ADO Den Haag of Holland's first division. Since his release, Wagenaar has yet to sign with another club.

When was the last time he played a meaningful match?

"A meaningful match," Wagenaar said. "A while. I don't even know. I think probably about 10 months, maybe."

Wagenaar signed a two-year contract with ADO Den Haag in 2006 after playing at Hartwick College in New York for three years. But after spending most of his time with the club's reserves, Wagenaar asked for his release.

"I knew that I wasn't going to get a shot at the first team and they're facing some financial difficulties now," he said. "I thought it was in my best interests to get out when I could, and I managed to get a settlement out of the club."

Wagenaar then began a journey that took him from Holland to Florida, back to Holland, to Iowa and then to California to keep sharp while trying to find another team.

He trained with Canada's under-23 and senior national squads, Major League Soccer's Toronto FC and a collegiate team in Iowa. Since his release, Wagenaar played one exhibition for the under-23 team, two separate halves for the senior nationals and one game and one half for Toronto FC.

"It's been pretty difficult," Wagenaar said. "Mentally, it's been quite hard, as well."

When Canada's training camp for Olympic qualifying began in California, Wagenaar and David Monsalve were competing to start in goal. Both were free agents trying to replace Asmir Begovic, who was serving a one-game suspension against Mexico.

Wagenaar didn't know he had surpassed Monsalve until Canadian head coach Nick Dasovic told him Tuesday that he would start in the team's opener. The game would be Wagenaar's first official appearance with the under-23 squad.

"Nothing phases the kid; he's very easygoing," Dasovic said. "If something goes wrong, he just figures it out, lets it go and gets on with it."

Wagenaar's big moment against Mexico proved pivotal in more ways than one.

"We did ourselves a world of good by getting a point against Mexico," Wagenaar said. "It definitely helped our confidence going into these next two games. I think it would be a big thing for Canadian soccer if we manage to qualify".

It also briefly turned Dasovic into Wagenaar's unofficial agent.

"If there are any MLS teams out there," Dasovic said after the game, "Josh is free, I think."

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DubaiSupporter Newbie

DubaiSupporter

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quote:Originally posted by BrennanFan

Wagenaar was absolutely brilliant last night. Best international game a Canadian keeper has had in YEARS. It would be an absolute travesty to not allow him to continue his form.

The less changes made to the side, the better. If it aint broke...

May not matter anyway. I heard that Asmir Begovic was recalled by his club - can anyone confirm.

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Number6 Newbie

Number6

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Wagenaar seems like he is playing for a contract. He is currently without a club, perhaps Mo told the kid to go do well in the tournament, do well and we could perhaps sign you. I am sure he is going about this tournament with a chip to prove he is still a solid keeper. From what I read he was unimpressive earlier with TFC and that is why they did not sign him. Personally, I would rather have him than Edwards simply because he is a capable Canadian, but clearly he must have asked too much or not shown enough for Mo to sign him.

I am happy with either keeper to be honest, it is one position I am not at all worried about with either of those guys manning GK for us.

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