Friendly - Colombia vs. Canada - October 14, 2014 - POST-match [R]

[dbailey62]

I unfortunately missed the last half an hour, but managed to sneak a peak at the feed as I got to my rehearsal, just in time for the James goal..annoying, but all credit to Floro and the Canada team. Some hugely positive things coming out of this game.

Will zip right to Henry though as he seems to be a hot topic. He was a disaster for the most part coming forward, however I have neither any complaints or high praise for his defending. He did that part of his job ok. He had a good game switching at RB against Jamaica and also looked reasonable coming forward. He was just completely of the rails with his passing and forward play in the first half.

People forget how young he is, CB's dont mature until their mid to late 20's. yet to counter that he also has a lot of experience under his belt. He has such a great upside if he can become more intelligent on and off the ball, he is just too much of a liability to play at CB right now for both club and country imo. However he can learn a lot at RB, be shielded a bit from the pressure and build back his confidence. The burning issue is whether anyone better at RB is being held back by his inclusion.

Talk of him being dropped from the squad is harsh imo. I look back at Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell who were complete disasters in their young age but like Henry displayed all the attributes to be a success. Not to say he will be one tenth of either of those players but in comparison how he develops over the next few years and if he manages to cut out the silly errors makes the difference with whether we have a relative Canadian Sol Campbell or another Titus Bramble.

Back to the game. Pacheco, Issey, Ricketts, JDG, Edgar, Bojan, hainault and straith all deserve special mentions. Ledgerwood drove me insane coming infield and leaving their winger and full back free in acres of space. Dejong was much better than his Jamaica showing, maybe the difference in attitude from playing Jamaica to Colombia tightened up his game because it was sloppy to the point of me not wanting to see him at LB again.

Overall a fabulous effort hard done by poor officiating, great atmosphere though, thanks to the colombia fans and set up for bringing their strongest team.

I agree with all you've said. Watching the game from the upper deck of RBA was a real pleasure and I've had a few conversations with Colombia and RBNY supporters who were impressed gushed over our defence and goalkeeping.

Henry, yes. Defensively he was almost flawless.  Against Colombia, I believe we can accept that and give him a Mulligan regarding his poor play going the other way.  Last night, D was the key!  We came up a touch short on a first rate goal.  We made a fundamental error by not putting someone on top of the ball holding up the taking of the free kick but that's the way it goes and hopefully it is lesson learned and not to be repeated.

[IceCreamMan]

Thinking about it that really is the kinda goal you don't mind giving up in a friendly against Columbia in order to make sure it doesn't happen in a WCQ match against Houndaras.

[aloyol]

I agree with all you've said. Watching the game from the upper deck of RBA was a real pleasure and I've had a few conversations with Colombia and RBNY supporters who were impressed gushed over our defence and goalkeeping.

Henry, yes. Defensively he was almost flawless.  Against Colombia, I believe we can accept that and give him a Mulligan regarding his poor play going the other way.  Last night, D was the key!  We came up a touch short on a first rate goal.  We made a fundamental error by not putting someone on top of the ball holding up the taking of the free kick but that's the way it goes and hopefully it is lesson learned and not to be repeated.

It went very fast, not sure anyone had the time to go on top of the ball.

[dbailey62]

It went very fast, not sure anyone had the time to go on top of the ball.

You may very well be right but Canada did let down.  Watching it live from the upper deck, we didn't know what the hell happened until we saw the replay.

[Obinna]

Thoughts after watching the second half.

 

JGL looked extremely comfortable and confident. His stock went up after this match. I can now see what Floro sees - that is a player with an outstanding soccer IQ. His decision making was spot on and his execution was near perfect. The best part is that he is still 19. It's still early days with the kid but he seems the type that gets better when surrounded by better players. I'd love to see more him moving forward.

 

By contrast - Ouimette looked out of his depth in this match. Never looked comfortable and I don't know if the quality was too high or that he was playing on his weak foot. Perhaps both are true. At any rate, I still think he should be involved in some way moving forward, but I don't know if he makes our A team (surely not as a LB anyways).

 

Ricketts has improved by leaps and bounds and his pace will cause any defender problems. He led the line well and I just wonder - and I know i'll catch some flack for this - if Cavallni is even necessary. If we stick to this formation, I don't think he has the pace to trouble defenders like Ricketts does. With Haber (as we could see), you still get some of that (plus the areal presence). With Akendele (still a maybe/longshot?), you wouldn't lose much in the way of speed either - and again we are talking about another guy with areal abilities. Cavallni, while likely the best finisher of the bunch, might not bring much else to the table. Is he mobile enough to cover the ground on the defensive end? All questions we all would love answers to (in the form of a CMNT appearance), but no longer am I penciling him in as a starter. Ricketts has finally deserved that. 

 

Edgar had an outstanding game. We can all see why.

 

DeJong had a ...well...better game than his last outing. I just feel we can get more from him. His delivery from the flank is very good, but I want to see him push the issue more when he has the ball. I think he has the ability to take players on...he just has to "let go" and stop playing within himself (if that makes any sense). Anyone else see it this way? On the defensive end, he was better too. Not great, but certainly better.

 

Hainault was better too than the Jamaica match, but like Ouimette ... he doesn't look THAT comfortable out there. He did his job though so I have to give credit there. I still would rather see a Jakovic - Edgar pairing, but I am content to see Hainault get more starts - for now.

 

DeGuzman showed his quality, not really shocked as most by his great performance. If everyone is healthy, I don't see him starting from the bench. I just don't. He is just too savy on the ball and always provides a dependable outlet. Teibert or Piette could be the ones taking over this duty over at some point in the cycle, but right now I am very comfortable with JDG as our 6. Just needs a club now..

 

Ledgerwood provided nothing going forward but was tactically disciplined (but so was everyone). He has experience on his side but outside of that I don't see what he brings to the table.

 

Pacheco had a good match. I think we can get even more out of him but I am still happy with what I saw. For me, he is still a depth guy, but certainly a dependable depth guy.

 

Larin was good in his few touches. Positive play and can't wait to see him in MLS (or maybe at Genk?). 

[madmonte]

Solid assessment above, Obinna, can't argue with much you said here.

[rob.notenboom]

I will be very curious to see if Floro can get a similar level of concentration and solid shape from the U23s. Combine that with some offensive flair and set piece work and they could be very entertaining to watch.

[reme90]

So I wanted to post the comments from the Spanish commentators from BEIN Sports. They were impressed really really impressed by Canada's game plan.

Second Half Comments: Worth the read

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doDxdi8HTwc

 

5:25 " 1,2,3,4,5,9 plus the keeper all the back. The whole game the whole game"

 

Some of the comments:

 

5:45" Nakajima anticipated James correctly. Great game by Nakajima, a a giant for Canada. An MLS Man from Montreal"

 

6:05 " What a an impressive dynamic -Nakajima - tireless. For the moment he has not  - up and down he has not stopped. We are at minute 50 let's see up to what minute the tank holds up" 

 

10:15 " Canada always making it's superior numbers felt"

 

11:10 Great save by Milan Borjan

 

11:50 " Always making them (Colombia) retreat - the Canadian team"

 

14:30 " A toe-poke by Edgar" " Very serious in the back Canada. Very organized, a team that has not resorted to fouling. Simply a tactical dicipline that has been fantastic"

 

You have to ask some questions of the midfield. Pekerman expected 2 rows of 4 defending, with abandon in the attack"

 

18:50 " 18 minutes into the second half and Canada remains intact. With their 5-4 block, very well applied, Colombia cant find a way through"

 

20:10 " Benito Floro did not go to cash in in Canada. He is working, This team (Canada) has had work" " This selection has work, extremely well tactically"

 

23:30" Pacheco is out, great game by him, great player this number 7"

 

24:23 " Great individual skill to get out by Edgar."

 

After the goal " It was the only way that the first was going to come by ....too much Class James, it was the only weapon against a fantastic defense by Canada that has armed a 9 man blockade, a very solid defense."

 

32:48 " Hard, very Hard, ugly and from the back. How he hits number 6 (Deguzman), quite impressive this number 6 Deguzman.He has hit everybody, systematically he has hit every Colombian, 1 by 1 from behind. SO HARD, so hard by Deguzman." "But how well he does it, no?" " Yes everytime he hits, he says his sorry, gives a couple of hugs to his rival, settles things down" " Best Canadian player in 2007"

 

44:38"Like a ballerina, number 20 enters. He is only 17 years old, first call-up to the National team. This man is from the University of Conneticut. He is some of the few that have been called up by Floro. No doubt thinking about the Olympics in RIo de Janeiro. There is another on the bench Hounsome Boakai plays for FC Edmonton, they call him the Canadian MESSI" - SO AWESOME LOL

[reme90]

Here is the first half

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6giTXSDB3E0

 

If there is interest ill do the comments for that as well.

[Keegan]

Here is the first half

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6giTXSDB3E0

 

If there is interest ill do the comments for that as well.

 

 

Please do, that was very nice

[Barthez-Battalion]

I agree with everything.

[shermanator]

RedNation Online had an interview with Floro recently where he touched on Osorio, Teibert and Cavallini. Thought it would be a good read.

 

 RNO: You previously been quoted as saying that Major League Soccer is important to the future of the Canadian National Team. Two of the prominent young players in the league – Jonathan Osorio and Russell Teibert – have not played much for Canada recently. What is the status of those two players and will they be more involved with the program once the 2014 MLS campaign comes to a close? 

Benito Floro: These are two young players that I consider. Osorio previously decided to stay with his club to help TFC due to the playoffs, so it was his own decision. The national team is supportive of the clubs and is trying to work with them. In Russell Teibert’s case, he knows what he needs to do to come back to the national team. I have already told him and I’m waiting. Once he does what he needs to do, he will be considered again. 

RNO: Lucas Cavallini, who plays professionally in Uruguay, is another young Canadian player that many people are excited about with respect to his potential to help the national team. What is his status and have you had recent communication with him? 

Benito Floro: First of all, I believe that the national team needs to be a priority for every player. Obviously, professional players have to balance their priorities between their clubs and the national team. However, in this case, so far Cavallini has decided to stay with his family and has not responded to calls from the national team. There is a spot for him in the future, but right now that has been his decision to date.  

 

http://www.rednationonline.ca/Interviews2014/RedNationInterviewSeriesBenitoFloro.aspx

[Ruffian]

Seems it is clear Cavallini does not consider Canada a priority.

 

Looks like the Teibert situation will work itself out. I cannot see Floro asking something that Teibert is unable to do.

[Barthez-Battalion]

One thing I hope happens is we schedule another friendly for November. All the other countries play two, we should be doing the same.

[toontownman]

Seems it is clear Cavallini does not consider Canada a priority.

 

Looks like the Teibert situation will work itself out. I cannot see Floro asking something that Teibert is unable to do.

 

Ha, I read that as leaving the ball in Teiberts court to kiss and make up!

 

Looks ominous for Cavallini, but on the flipside it might be he is just waiting for more important games. Which while I can understand wanting to try to keep his momentum and starting place in his club team, its arrogant at best (if he is later interested in playing for Canada again) that he thinks he can just walk into the team when he fancies it, without investing time in the squad get togethers and the new philosophy.

 

Either way Floro has done the right thing in throwing the ball back into the players courts. Doesn't seem that the CSA or Floro should be cutting any flack here.

[toontownman]

One thing I hope happens is we schedule another friendly for November. All the other countries play two, we should be doing the same.

 

The MLS needs to get on board with the FIFA dates.

[Ruffian]

The MLS needs to get on board with the FIFA dates.

 

I think I read earlier that in the month that MLS will respect the October and November dates next year. I am not sure what they will do with their schedule.

[RS]

The MLS needs to get on board with the FIFA dates.

 

MLS has left November's FIFA dates open.

[shorty]

One thing I hope happens is we schedule another friendly for November. All the other countries play two, we should be doing the same.

 

I agree.  How about this for an idea?  Book a friendly in the November window against the Dominican Republic.

 

Pull together a biggish camp that effectively a combo of the first team and the likely candidates for the Olympic squad.  Floro gets everyone on the same page for how he wants them to play.  The first team takes on Panama, then a mostly U-23 squad with key veterans plays the DR.  DR is slated to move up the FIFA rankings tomorrow into the low 400s for points which should put them between 80-90.  They are out of the Caribbean 2015 Gold Cup qualifying now so they would be available.  If we win that game we stand to collect 3 x 120-ish = about 360 points for our November total that goes into the mix for the next ranking calculation.  Plus, I think we want to know that ALL the players in the MNT pool (particularly the players from 12-30 in the depth chart) can implement Floro's system as well as we saw them do (defensively at least) against Colombia.  The DR seems about the right level of challenge for the U-23 guys: winnable but not a pushover.  In WCQ this is the type of team that we HAVE to break down and beat clinically and not underestimate or play down to (anyone remember 0:0 Puerto Rico or 0:0 St. Kitts?), and at some point between now and 2018 we will surely need to count on some of the younger guys to step in for more than a few minutes.  Might as well get them some time now at a level that's right.

 

Thoughts?  

[reme90]

Ok, here's the first half, I'm just putting up the color commentary and not the play by play. all minutes listed are the video minutes not the time of the game. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6giTXSDB3E0 

 

0:54  "Julian Deguzman, the two captains, a man without a team at this moment"

 

1:50 "they face each other, the team number 120 - Canada and the third Colombia in the Fifa rankings. BUt I remind you that the last time they met, was a Continental Final. Colombia the favorite, they had a great team, with ASprilla, and Colombia fell 2-0 to Canada. "

 

2:20 " International Friendly in Red Bull New Jersey between Canada and Colombia. The ball rolls thru Bein Sports and your heart starts to palpitate pure fire and futbol. Red uniform for the Canadians. " lol fire and futbol

3:30 " James with a shot to Milan's hands, with only 1 minute in the game and Colombia has already threatened with danger"

 

3:40 " .....30 meter shot with his left, and handled well by the Canadian keeper"

 

5:50 " James with a switch,  with a header to recover the Canadian team, that's Nakajima.  With a first touch, he fell, what does the referee say? Penlaty or no Penalty, Mr Farfan, what do you say?

I see a foul, I see a foul because their is a shoulder to the back, I'd like to see the replay, it was a quick play and we like the referee only have a moment to decide" 

"No, there is nothing, absoultely nothing, it was not the back, but shoulder to shoulder" Absolutely nothing, well done referee"

 

7:35 " Here we see Benito Floro, born in Spain. 62 years of age"

13:20 " the stadium is not full. However, there is about a 90% of it's capacity." 

" we can say the rival (Canada) does not encourage attendance too much. It's not the same to see a Colombia v Brasil like in Miami where we had a record crowd of 74 thousand. It cant compare to Canada v Colombia"

 

14:30 " I'll tell you something Alejandro, even though the rival is 120 in the ranking, they go out to meet Colombia. How does Pekerman deal with a team with only one outlet in Ricketts. That kind of transforms the tactics. 2 blocks of 4 very compact, we will see how they do"

"another characteristics that will test the Colombians, is that Canada is very strong physically"

 

16:12 " This short passes from the back is very Spanish of Floro. Too not boot the ball with a long ball, but the pass out from the back" " He's done well with that"

 

17:20 " Who does Pacheco remind you of? Even has the same number. ... you thinking Edmundo, the animal (nickname) the great Brasilian player? Yes , he has that way about him"

 

19:25 " the play is beautifully done, but it's clear it's an offside goal. it wont count"

 

19:40 Replay " Actually looks like number 5 keeps him onside, it's very hard to tell with that angle but I believe there was no offside"

 

21:09 " Football is always deceiving, for those that thought that Canada was going to be an easy rival, well at least on paper they are, you can't hide that fact. but as you can see once the ball starts rolling Alejandro"

" the problem is when a team is so physical, and with a tendency to defend the short game, in a block with 9 10 men, it's hard to open the door. These are games are typical of when the first goal lands, 2,3,4 goals come one right after the other" 

" totally agree,  the first one is the hardest one,  it's opening the flood gate with the first that's hard"

" With El Salvador, it was kind of the same thing, the first took a bit, but then the second and third fell easier, then later the 4 and even 5"

 

22:45 " Deguzman clears .... when the defense is so compact, there were 9 up to 10 men back on that play for Canada, it's important to use the medium shots or passes. When you come in with short passes, it helps Canada do it's job. For the moment Colombia is not using the right weapon "

 

23:10 " all 11 back in their half for Canada .... whoa, hard tackle from Deguzman" " That will be a yellowcard" " Played quickly be Colombia instead"

 

25:38 " Canada has only gone to one World Cup in 86 where they lost all three games ..... our production team has looked over Falcao's goal and they have absolutely determined that it was an onside goal, number 5 kept him onside"

 

26:14 " Dejong does well to complain about the hand ball, in fact that could be a yellow card" " Carbonera pretends to hit him in the face,Dejong does well to complain, the man from the Bundesliga"

 

27:10 " This is where games can change, anything can happen, teams that are not typically good in attack are real great in set pieces. In fact it brings memories of the first goal back in the Gold Cup when these two last met 14 years ago. Pacheco will hit this, the man from Portugal Santa Clara in the second division"

" Pacheco clinical, ohhh, terrible marking by Colombia on that corner. David Edjar comes in totally alone, grave error on that set piece by Colombia"

 

28:10" 120 place Canada, but it has 4 official titles in major tournament victories, that's more than Colombia. Olympic Gold in 1904, NorthAmerican Cup of Nations in 1990,  Concacaf champions in 1985, and the Gold Cup in 2000" 

 

32:17 " In that open view, look how clear it is, that 9 man block Canada has masterfully executed. They have 9 men within 10 meters of each other"

 

33:50 " You can tell the work Canada has put in. It's very clear that Benito Floro has done the required work with these guys. This is a team that is very clear, what they are to do on the field. They setup their block of 4--5-1, within 10 meters of each other, close to the keeper, leaving Ricketts up top. Hoping for the counter attack with Pacheco number 7 leading the way"

 

36:00 " I'm starting to like this Canadian team, at minute 34 they are not dominating, but they close down the spaces so well. Making Juan Guillermo he has spent more time on the ground than running on the pitch playing football"  (The correlation is obvious and intentional )

 

36:55 " See again Canada has it's two lines very close, spreading out the width of the pitch"

 

37:35 " Doesn't matter, Colombia has to shoot from there. The Canadian blockade is too strong, and too compact with their keeper. It will always be worth to kick it from there"

 

38:55 " Immediately, Canada retreats into Benito's two lines, how do you rip through their ranks Alejandro?"

"shooting from afar is one, making wall passes, but also making the diagonal balls and runs like they did early on" 

 

40:03 " Of course, you have to start shooting from medium and long distances, because Canada has 10 men with their keeper all compact in the back, Very well spaced across the width, as well they are exerting their physical presence, they have to start shooting"

" It also seems, Canada's greatest weakness is their keeper"

" Yes' he has surrendered some rebounds, another weapon, is to have the fullbacks make runs behind their lines"

 

40:45 " They gave him space, the man from Montreal Impact, that was interesting from Nakajima, and from Pacheco from the midfield, and Ricketts movement agains the Colombian defense. "

 

41"35 " You want to know something, Milan the keeper, has only played in one game"

" With even more reason, we have to shoot from mid and long distances"

 

42:45 " that's a yellow card, the Canadians always hit from behind, they are winning by demolition"

 

" 7 in the wall setup by Borjan"

 

"james with the left .... ohhhhh ....Spectacular, the punch out by Borjan, how did the ball not go in?" ( kinda ate his words now huh, lol)

 

" Well see, you were speaking ill of the man, and that is why he made that impressive stop. That goal was ready to be sung by James Rodriguez. What a beauty stop, what exquisite technique..."

 

44:54 " 11 men in the box, even Ricketts, Colombia has to continue to insist however"

 

47:50 " very interesting first half by Canada, very stron 4-5 block. Colombia has not been able to decipher the key" 

[rob.notenboom]

^ Thanks so much for this. Very interesting to read that perspective.

[reme90]

No problem, sometimes we are so cynical about our national team, that it's nice to hear an outside perspective. 

I felt they thought a rout was eventually coming, as did many of us. However, as the match went on, they realized we were very well prepared. We showed a lot of discipline and organization.

After watching decades of Canadian games, I can say that this 1-0 loss, was the most encouraging loss for a very long time. I have hope for the future.  

[Sébastien]

Thanks reme90.

 

I agree with you. Especially as I was expecting a similar game to when we played against Argentina a few years back and got absolutely slaughtered.

 

A lot of us (myself included) kinda wondered why we were doing this game. What's the point? I see one in hindsight now.

[rob.notenboom]

No problem, sometimes we are so cynical about our national team, that it's nice to hear an outside perspective.

I felt they thought a rout was eventually coming, as did many of us. However, as the match went on, they realized we were very well prepared. We showed a lot of discipline and organization.

After watching decades of Canadian games, I can say that this 1-0 loss, was the most encouraging loss for a very long time. I have hope for the future.

Completely agree with all of your points here.

[Greatest Cockney Rip Off]

For more views from people outside Canada, Tim Vickery was talking about this match on the BBC last night. He said he was very impressed with Canada and it was the best Canadian side he had seen in a long time. He completmented us on our footballing ability and said he really liked what he saw of the teenager we brought on at the end if the match.

Canada very rarely gets talked about by the media in England and if we are mentioned it is usually not anything positive. Hearing him talk so nicely about our team put a huge smile on my face.