Canada Announces Roster (camp in Qatar)

[David C.]

Although Sam posted the roster in the Canada-Japan thread, I figured this was worthy of its own.

http://www.canadasoccer.com/canada-announces-roster-additional-match-for-camp-in-qatar--p153473

Canada announces roster, additional match for camp in Qatar

Canada’s Men’s National Team has announced its 21-player roster for an upcoming pair of Men’s International Friendlies against Japan and Belarus in Doha, Qatar.

Canada will take on Japan on Friday 22 March (19.00 local kick-off; 12.00 ET / 09.00 PT) at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha; and will then play Belarus in a second match in Doha on Monday 25 March (18.00 local kick-off; 11.00 ET / 08.00 PT) at Aspire Stadium.

The match against Japan will be streamed in Canada on Sportsnet.ca (12.00 ET / 09.00 PT). Live coverage of both matches will be available on Twitter @CanadaSoccerEN. CanadaSoccerTV will be on-site in Doha providing video coverage of the camp.

Tony Fonseca, Technical Director for the Canadian Soccer Association, will act as the interim head coach for both matches at the upcoming camp.

“This camp represents an opportunity to reintegrate our European-based players as we take on two very difficult opponents in Japan and Belarus,” said Fonseca.

“These two matches will be an important platform for our continued preparations for the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup and beyond.”

Goalkeeper Tomer Chencinksi, currently playing for Maccabi Tel Aviv FC in Israel will be taking part in his first camp with the national team set-up.

Midfielder Stefan Cebara who plays for Nogometni Klub Celje in Slovenia has been invited into his first camp with the Men’s National Team. Cebara was part of Canada’s Men’s U-20 Team in 2011.

Eighteen-year-old midfielder Samuel Piette, the male selection for Canada Soccer Player of the Month in February, has earned a recall to the senior team after recently taking part in the CONCACAF U-20 Championship with the U-20 side.

The squad features a total of 15 players from Canada’s recent FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers campaign who will be rejoining the team after missing out on the January camp in USA.

The Men’s National Team’s camp in Qatar will span a total of 10 days from 17 to 26 March.

At this time, Canada’s next scheduled competitive action will be the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup to take place in USA in July.

CANADA

GK- Milan Borjan | TUR / Sivasspor

GK- Tomer Chencinski | ISR / Maccabi Tel Aviv

CB- David Edgar | ENG / Burnley FC

CB- André Hainault | SCO / Ross Country FC

CB- Dejan Jaković | USA / D.C. United

CB- Adam Straith | GER / FC Energie Cottbus

FB- Marcel de Jong | GER / FC Augsburg

FB- Ashtone Morgan | CAN / Toronto FC

M- Kyle Bekker | CAN / Toronto FC

M- Samuel Piette | GER / Fortuna Düsseldorf

M - Julian de Guzman | GER / SSV Jahn Regensburg

M- Atiba Hutchinson | NED / PSV Eindhoven

M- Will Johnson | USA / Real Salt Lake

M- Nik Ledgerwood | SWE / Hammarby Fotboll

M- Pedro Pacheco | POR / CD Santa Clara

M- Issey Nakajima-Farran | CYP / AEK Larnaca FC

F- Stefan Cebara | HUN / Zalaegerszegi TE

F- Randy Edwini-Bonsu | GER / Eintracht Braunsweig

F- Marcus Haber | ENG / Stevenage FC

F- Simeon Jackson | ENG / Norwich City FC

F- Tosaint Ricketts | NOR / Sandnes Ulf

[finchster]

Although Sam posted the roster in the Canada-Japan thread, I figured this was worthy of its own.

http://www.canadasoccer.com/canada-announces-roster-additional-match-for-camp-in-qatar--p153473

Canada announces roster, additional match for camp in Qatar

Canada’s Men’s National Team has announced its 21-player roster for an upcoming pair of Men’s International Friendlies against Japan and Belarus in Doha, Qatar.

Canada will take on Japan on Friday 22 March (19.00 local kick-off; 12.00 ET / 09.00 PT) at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha; and will then play Belarus in a second match in Doha on Monday 25 March (18.00 local kick-off; 11.00 ET / 08.00 PT) at Aspire Stadium.

The match against Japan will be streamed in Canada on Sportsnet.ca (12.00 ET / 09.00 PT). Live coverage of both matches will be available on Twitter @CanadaSoccerEN. CanadaSoccerTV will be on-site in Doha providing video coverage of the camp.

Tony Fonseca, Technical Director for the Canadian Soccer Association, will act as the interim head coach for both matches at the upcoming camp.

“This camp represents an opportunity to reintegrate our European-based players as we take on two very difficult opponents in Japan and Belarus,” said Fonseca.

“These two matches will be an important platform for our continued preparations for the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup and beyond.”

Goalkeeper Tomer Chencinksi, currently playing for Maccabi Tel Aviv FC in Israel will be taking part in his first camp with the national team set-up.

Midfielder Stefan Cebara who plays for Nogometni Klub Celje in Slovenia has been invited into his first camp with the Men’s National Team. Cebara was part of Canada’s Men’s U-20 Team in 2011.

Eighteen-year-old midfielder Samuel Piette, the male selection for Canada Soccer Player of the Month in February, has earned a recall to the senior team after recently taking part in the CONCACAF U-20 Championship with the U-20 side.

The squad features a total of 15 players from Canada’s recent FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers campaign who will be rejoining the team after missing out on the January camp in USA.

The Men’s National Team’s camp in Qatar will span a total of 10 days from 17 to 26 March.

At this time, Canada’s next scheduled competitive action will be the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup to take place in USA in July.

CANADA

GK- Milan Borjan | TUR / Sivasspor

GK- Tomer Chencinski | ISR / Maccabi Tel Aviv

CB- David Edgar | ENG / Burnley FC

CB- André Hainault | SCO / Ross Country FC

CB- Dejan Jaković | USA / D.C. United

CB- Adam Straith | GER / FC Energie Cottbus

FB- Marcel de Jong | GER / FC Augsburg

FB- Ashtone Morgan | CAN / Toronto FC

M- Kyle Bekker | CAN / Toronto FC

M- Samuel Piette | GER / Fortuna Düsseldorf

M - Julian de Guzman | GER / SSV Jahn Regensburg

M- Atiba Hutchinson | NED / PSV Eindhoven

M- Will Johnson | USA / Real Salt Lake

M- Nik Ledgerwood | SWE / Hammarby Fotboll

M- Pedro Pacheco | POR / CD Santa Clara

M- Issey Nakajima-Farran | CYP / AEK Larnaca FC

F- Stefan Cebara | HUN / Zalaegerszegi TE

F- Randy Edwini-Bonsu | GER / Eintracht Braunsweig

F- Marcus Haber | ENG / Stevenage FC

F- Simeon Jackson | ENG / Norwich City FC

F- Tosaint Ricketts | NOR / Sandnes Ulf

Who said Tomer would play for Israel? anyone glad to see him in there, our keeper pool is so thin. Kinda suprised to see De Guzman called, if we are building for the future then how does he factor in? Perhaps until the end of the Gold Cup?

[El Hombre]

Who said Tomer would play for Israel? anyone glad to see him in there, our keeper pool is so thin. Kinda suprised to see De Guzman called, if we are building for the future then how does he factor in? Perhaps until the end of the Gold Cup?

I think talent wise, JdG is still in the top six for central midfielders. If nothing else, he's good cover for a middle three of Hutch, Bekker and Johnson. I think he'll continue to be at least good cover for another 2 or 3 years at least.

[Addona]

Does anyone have thoughts on why Cavallini wasn't called?

[tyler453]

Does anyone have thoughts on why Cavallini wasn't called?

I'd imagine flying from Montevideo to Doha would be quite an expensive and not to mention, long and grueling flight.

[Alex_K]

I just want to humbly inform the CSA that they are missing a "ch"

[youllneverwalkalone]

I just want to humbly inform the CSA that they are missing a "ch"

That's not the only thing they're missing!

[Obinna]

Kinda suprised to see De Guzman called, if we are building for the future then how does he factor in? Perhaps until the end of the Gold Cup?

DeGuzman was born in 81, so that makes him 32 right? That is not very old to be fair. We are not talking about a 35 or 36 year old here.

That being said, he is a veteran, and the squad will need a few veterans as long as they keep their form, and he was one of those players I have no problem with including. Same goes for DeRosario and Bernier. You cannot have all young guys in a squad.

[Keegan]

Most small football nations use their stars until they retire, this is reality unfortunately. JDG has produced some real magic at times for the CMNT, if someone who stepped in could even produce half of what we've seen from him before then I'd be okay with dropping him for them but at the moment they don't exist. JDG is coming off a pretty solid MLS final half season and now seems to be performing alright in B2... no way we could say no to that at this point.

[ThiKu]

Quite excited by the squad. Particularly with the recall of Straith, and the first senior caps for quite a few.

Calling JDG isn't an issue on-field, but there are loads of rumours about off-field - I'd rather he not get called.

No Cava? Uruguay to Doha for a friendly....call him up to the Gold Cup. Much more valuable.

As always, would love to see who was considered, who was called, and if anyone refused. Thrilled that REB accepted - seemed he had quite a chip on his shoulder.

[maccaliam]

It's sad but the first thing I thought was I hope JDG isn't there bc I could see him using this camp as a holiday rather than serious MNT prep and performances.

It is unfair bc I have zero firsthand knowledge of him and his professionalism, but I can't shake the idea of him being a prime example of how the MNT camps used to be viewed as a holiday and a chance to get together with some old friends. I hope I'm wrong.

[nolando]

• tomer chencinski ‏@tomerchencinski
  Super stoked to rep @CanadaSoccerEN #CanMNT Looking forward to the upcoming matches. Thanks to everyone for the support #hardworkpaysoff
  
• 8h StoneSportsMgmt ‏@StoneSportsMgmt
  
  Mazel-Tov to @MaccabiTLVFC GK @tomerchencinski for his 1st #CANMNT camp. Invited last (PHX) camp. Well deserved!
  

[Addona]

No Cava? Uruguay to Doha for a friendly....call him up to the Gold Cup. Much more valuable.

As always, would love to see who was considered, who was called, and if anyone refused. Thrilled that REB accepted - seemed he had quite a chip on his shoulder.

True regarding Cava, I just want him to get some chemistry with a guy like Bekker. I guess Cava has already spent some time with Piette and the other more senior members of the team.

I'm glad REB is there too but, as a side note, it's pretty tough to keep a chip on your shoulder when you're barely getting on the pitch, or even making the bench for your club.

[madmonte]

I'm thinking Tomer will see action, but it's notable that neither Lars or Kenny are called....

For me, Borjan has earned #1 keeper status with Canada, starting consistently in Turkey, which for me is well above Norway and Sweden in terms of a top league to play in.

As for Israel, it's not a bad league, honestly, but Tomer hasn't even been on the bench since early February for the club...getting 0 league minutes, and 6 bench appearances in their regular season...he doesn't have backup keeper locked down, seems he's almost 3rd keeper status with them at this moment. But it is the top team in Israel, that will be in Champions League qualifying next year.

[Joe Keeper]

Not a bad roster but here are quite a few people on it I would prefer to not see.

The good calls:

GK- Milan Borjan - Time to step up to the #1

GK- Tomer Chencinski - We need to see what he can do.

CB- Dejan Jaković - Seemed solid enough in the last camp. Part of the old set up but has enough potential to be looked at again.

FB- Ashtone Morgan - To continue his development more than anything.

M- Kyle Bekker - Shows a lot of promise.

M- Samuel Piette - Shows a lot of promise.

M- Atiba Hutchinson - Along with Josh Simpson and DeRo, the only veteran players I ever want to see again (and DeRo only because I think he deserves the chance to prove himself as he was clearly our best player in the last round of WCQ but left injured. He may only be worth including up until the Gold Cup.

M- Nik Ledgerwood - Error prone and on the bubble, but has showed he may have some worth in the last camp.

M- Pedro Pacheco - Part of the old set up, but was not really responsible for our latest disaster. Needs to show he belongs in the next year or so.

F- Stefan Cebara - new

F- Randy Edwini-Bonsu - new

F- Marcus Haber - On the bubble but had a decent OQ tourney.

The Bad calls:

FB- Marcel de Jong - Too injury prone to be considered long term and is over hyped IMHO.

M - Julian de Guzman - Loved ya back in the day man, but unless you show a dramatic turn around in your club form, you have no business here.

M- Issey Nakajima-Farran - Debatable but just has not brought enough to the table in recent years.

The middle ground:

CB- David Edgar - Looks like a pylon at times but may be salvageable

CB- André Hainault - Could still be useful because he definitely can play better than he has.

CB- Adam Straith - Always on the bubble. Has never really stepped up.

M- Will Johnson - May be salvageable but needs to improve again. One of our better midfielders from the old set up.

F- Simeon Jackson - Loads of potential but just does not show enough consistency.

F- Tosaint Ricketts - Loads of potential but really needs to improve his all round game.

Perhaps I am being a bit harsh on a lot of players in my lists here but I just think everyone who even gets called to the national team in the next 3 years has to earn their place. This team still has too many free riders. I am also harsh because I think too many people on this forum think that the only players we should scrap are the veteran players from WCQ. If this is the case then age is the only criterion for exclusion for the new versus the old. I think we need to judge who, from the old set up, gets another chance based upon age certainly, but more so on how they performed.

I think that a lot of the players on this roster from my bad and middle ground lists are taking up space for others who deserve a look. I would rather win, lose or tie right now with promising fringe, youth or up and coming players (no matter what their age) than players whom have more than had their shot to lift the WCQ team to new heights. We really need to harness the new generations coming through the domestic and foreign based teams, not just try and make the same old same old work when it can't. I don't buy the argument that we need some of the old guard around just to mentor new players at all. Things are sufficiently bad enough for the program right now that we need a revolutionary turn in player names.

To me the old guard that expired with the latest exit from WCQ represent the product and culmination of the old way of doing things. The CSA has been trying for years to build up our pro clubs so that we could start turning out a new generation of kids who are trained in new ways by new professional outfits. Why not harness this system right from the beginning? Only now in Canada are we starting to professionalize the game again after the demise of the NASL and old CSL. Well at least this camp may start to sort out who in the middle ground of players from the old gaurd does or does not belong.

With all of this said, lets think in terms of who is not here that we would like to have seen. Who would this be for everyone?

[Addona]

^- I don't necessarily agree with everything you say, but I'm fine with most of it (just differences of opinion).

But, I do think you're being too harsh on De Jong. How many guys do we have playing as consistently as MDJ does at a similar or better level than him? I can pretty much only think of 1 guy: Atiba (and Borjan if you count keepers). Anyone I'm missing? I get the whole "they have to earn their place" notion, but it is all relative. What if only 3 players are deemed to "earn their place"? We can't send out 3 players ... so, 8 who haven't "earned their place" will join them. IMO, De Jong is easily one of our top 18, and probably one of our top 11.

[ken]

Dumb question but who does Stefan Cebara play for, the MOACA above has him in Slovenia, the CSA release has him in both Slovenia and Hungary, is he on loan from Slovenia to Hungary or vice versa or has the CSA simply mixed things up.

[jonovision]

(and DeRo only because I think he deserves the chance to prove himself as he was clearly our best player in the last round of WCQ but left injured. He may only be worth including up until the Gold Cup.

Maybe I'm just a "hater" but for me he was not clearly our best player. An average attacking player in a bad bunch makes him look good, but other players did more important work for the team.

Also, I think "loads of potential" is being generous to Ricketts and Jackson, both of whom are at the age where they should be in the prime of their careers.

[Obinna]

It's sad but the first thing I thought was I hope JDG isn't there bc I could see him using this camp as a holiday rather than serious MNT prep and performances.

It is unfair bc I have zero firsthand knowledge of him and his professionalism, but I can't shake the idea of him being a prime example of how the MNT camps used to be viewed as a holiday and a chance to get together with some old friends. I hope I'm wrong.

Are you serious?

Sorry but that is one of the most ridiculous things I have read on this site for a while.

If he wanted to get together with his buddies a la annual boat party, he would do so. He wouldn't need to wait for a call up to the national team.

[Obinna]

The Bad calls:

FB- Marcel de Jong - Too injury prone to be considered long term and is over hyped IMHO.

M - Julian de Guzman - Loved ya back in the day man, but unless you show a dramatic turn around in your club form, you have no business here.

M- Issey Nakajima-Farran - Debatable but just has not brought enough to the table in recent years.

Disagree COMPLETELY.

Re De Jong: Too injury prone to be considered long term? We are not talking about Stuart Holden here! He has played over 50 league games (mostly in the Bundesliga) since 2010. That is A LOT of games in two and a half seasons for a player that is "too injury prone" for NATIONAL TEAM FOOTBALL. You may have an argument if you were talking club football, but this is a national team where you call the best players when they are available.

Re deGuzman: Really? No business in the national team? Why? Is it because he is WAY over the hill at the undesirable age of 32? Or is it because he was in such terrible form with FCD last MLS season?

Re Nakajima: Hard to bring something to the table when you are not called into the team. Of course, he is playing on a weak club in a mediocre league. However, he has those attacking qualities that are rare in our program, he already has experience (20 caps or more), and is still on the right side of 30. I don't see why he is a bad call.

[Obinna]

Maybe I'm just a "hater" but for me he was not clearly our best player. An average attacking player in a bad bunch makes him look good, but other players did more important work for the team.

Also, I think "loads of potential" is being generous to Ricketts and Jackson, both of whom are at the age where they should be in the prime of their careers.

Agree about Jackson and Rickett's but certainly not deRosario. I don't know how you can see him as an "average attacker" by CONCACAF standards. Every other team in our region (that doesn't begin with "M") would bite off our hand if we offered him..including the USA.

[madmonte]

I'm prone to agree with Obinna here. And on top of those comments we as a group are way to willing to dismiss almost every player that had anything to do with THAT Honduras game. It's an incredibly narrow minded view that doesn't encompass at ALL the fact that most of the guys in the dismissed group also gave Canada one of it's longest undefeated streaks in history. But noone talks about that. All anyone can talk about is Honduras. Narrow minded to the extreme, there are some valuable players in that mix to us, and dismissing them so out of hand would be a travesty.

Edit: And before that gets taken the wrong way, Joe Keeper that was not aimed at you, I'm talking Voyageurs in general. You have guys from that game on both sides of your list, but I still disagree with much of your list.

[xcalibre]

Agree about Jackson and Rickett's but certainly not deRosario. I don't know how you can see him as an "average attacker" by CONCACAF standards. Every other team in our region (that doesn't begin with "M") would bite off our hand if we offered him..including the USA.

To be fair I think Montserrat could use him as well.

[Lord Bob]

I had no idea the Americans were in such desperate need of an aging attitude case who turns the ball over uselessly but does score well from the spot.

[Keegan]

I had no idea the Americans were in such desperate need of an aging attitude case who turns the ball over uselessly but does score well from the spot.

"Attitude case"... LOL. De Rosario is respected all around the league. Yallop thinks he's class, Kinnear thinks he's class, Olsen thinks he's class. He did a check signing motion ONCE... "OMG, let's ****ing forget everything EVER." Give me a break and give Dwayne a break. The role he took on in that January camp shows you how class he is and yes, he was the best player on the pitch against the AMERICANS, who believe me would have taken him over any of the players they took to Honduras...

The guy has some swagger and is confident in his ability on the ball. God, we could use some more De Rosarios. The guy is the best Canadian footballer of his generation of course he's going to try to make things happen for us on the pitch and of course they aren't always going to work, he's not Messi or Ronaldo but he's the best we've had in the last decade.