Gold Cup 2021

[dyslexic nam]

6 hours ago, SpecialK said:

If one of our star players get hurt because of this stupid, useless tournament all because Herdman got embarrassed last gold cup and the selfish pride of a trophy. There is a reason why the USA and Mexico are NOT taking there A squads. Mark my words. You all thing Haïti is gonna play nice and with a CONCACAF ref?? I’m sorry this is so stupid. 

That “stupid, useless tournament” is our Confederation championship.   It may not be the Euros but it will only gain in stature by teams taking it seriously and sending strong squads - like we are doing.  

As for us taking a strong team, we need to do it to ensure we are completely in sync for the WCQ.  Playing in the GC isn’t going to detract from our WCQ campaign - it is a key piece of it.  We need to get 2 wins from our first 3 games to be avoid being in a lot of trouble right away.  Prep through GC games is the best way to do that with momentum.  

[TGAA_Star]

Just now, dyslexic nam said:

That “stupid, useless tournament” is our Confederation championship.   It may not be the Euros but it will only gain in stature by teams taking it seriously and sending strong squads - like we are doing.  

As for us taking a strong team, we need to do it to ensure we are completely in sync for the WCQ.  Playing in the GC isn’t going to detract from our WCQ campaign - it is a key piece of it.  We need to get 2 wins from our first 3 games to be avoid being in a lot of trouble right away.  Prep through GC games is the best way to do that with momentum.  

I happen to agree 

[PopePouri]

The US is taking an awful risk not calling their European players in prep for WCQ. They must be incredibly confident in their young talent.

[Aird25]

9 hours ago, Blackjack15 said:

Here it is

I always start off really enjoying his interviews, but by the end I’m over saturated. Was he reading a speech answering some of those questions?

All strength to him though. He’s got the boys believing 

[WestHamCanadianinOxford]

I will add something to the injured for WCQ discussion. 

I just watched one of my club side's players get absolutely cleaned out in the box by a Scottish defender in their first preseason game.  Aaron Cresswell began having injury problems after getting destroyed by a German lower league defender in 2016.

Friendlies are often not friendlies if lower league players start feeling like they are getting the piss taken out of them. 

 

 

[ag futbol]

33 minutes ago, TGAA_Star said:

I happen to agree 

I agree it suits our purposes in this case. We have a group that is young and needs games together against decent opposition. The tournament is timely. It also forces the hand of our association which hasn’t been great at scheduling games.

But otherwise, I sort of roll my eyes at hosting this thing every 2 years and pretty much always having it on US soil.

[El Hombre]

21 minutes ago, ag futbol said:

I agree it suits our purposes in this case. We have a group that is young and needs games together against decent opposition. The tournament is timely.

I agree with this 10x over when it comes to our defence.  I'd much rather learn now that this three in the back with two wingbacks system does/does not work rather than really test it for the first time against Honduras on Sept. 2nd.  That means that our best player must be at this tournament to work out those kinks.

[TGAA_Star]

1 hour ago, ag futbol said:

I agree it suits our purposes in this case. We have a group that is young and needs games together against decent opposition. The tournament is timely. It also forces the hand of our association which hasn’t been great at scheduling games.

But otherwise, I sort of roll my eyes at hosting this thing every 2 years and pretty much always having it on US soil.

Yeah it should alternate by having Canada host and other countries hosting like Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Panama,  etc

[Unnamed Trialist]

I was against taking our best players to this tournament, and still feel they should be in their pre-seasons, getting ready for the long haul. 

After all, what clubs do in their preseasons, in terms of medical testing, fitness, resistence, is what will allow a player to last a whole season of matches. Without injury, without burnout.

That includes the 14 upcoming matches for WC qualifying. 

Basically what I am saying is this: by not allowing the clubs to do their job with the players they have under contract, we are risking our own WC campaign. We are throwing our players into an intensive set of qualifiers without doing anything to ensure they are properly prepared in terms of rest and prep. We are treating them as raw meat, as cannon fodder, for what purpose? We are not properly prepping as half our starters are away; any psychological edge or even winning is only relative (last time we won we were immediately bitch-slapped like idiots in WC qualifying) 

So this GC squad is in good part irresponsible. 

I'll watch, I want us to win. And even if we win, it basically gives us almost nothing going forward except some iffy notion of mental edge or whatever Herdman would spin it. And the drawbacks outweigh any purported positive.

 

[nazzer]

14 minutes ago, TGAA_Star said:

Yeah it should alternate by having Canada host and other countries hosting like Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Panama,  etc

Never gonna happen as long as the tournament sells the tickets it does in the USA

[Unnamed Trialist]

4 minutes ago, nazzer said:

Never gonna happen as long as the tournament sells the tickets it does in the USA

It is only a question of policy, not money. Every other confederation rotates. Sometimes that rotation means more for a host, makes more money for a Confederation. Sometimes less. That is not the point. The point is that regardless of stadium size, ticketing and so on, tv rights stay the same. And in fact, attendances can also be terrible in the US.

The premises don't hold anyways. In Canada, the US, Mexico, Jamaica, Haiti and many of the Central American teams would draw well, depending where games are. Same in Costa Rica; same in Mexico. 

The tournament is fairer if it is rotated. Concacaf is sorting out a lot of other basic questions, and this has to be on the to-do list.

Edited July 9, 2021 by Unnamed Trialist

[nazzer]

2 minutes ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

It is only a question of policy, not money. Every other confederation rotates. Sometimes that rotation means more for a host, makes more money for a Confederation. Sometimes less. That is not the point. The point is that regardless of stadium size, ticketing and so on, tv rights stay the same. And in fact, attendances can also be terrible in the US.

The tournament is fairer if it is rotated. Concacaf is sorting out a lot of other basic questions, and this has to be on the to-do list.

Do you think CONCACAF is making anything more than a pittance off tv revenue for the Gold? Euro and Copa America can rotate because they have tv contracts worth something. I doubt the Mexico and USA tv contracts are enough to subsidize the tournament in other countrie.s 

[Aird25]

The Euros and Copa America have been incredible this summer. I can't believe people aren't excited about the Gold Cup, and don't want our best players to be part of it. 

[CanadaFan123]

25 minutes ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

I was against taking our best players to this tournament, and still feel they should be in their pre-seasons, getting ready for the long haul. 

After all, what clubs do in their preseasons, in terms of medical testing, fitness, resistence, is what will allow a player to last a whole season of matches. Without injury, without burnout.

That includes the 14 upcoming matches for WC qualifying. 

Basically what I am saying is this: by not allowing the clubs to do their job with the players they have under contract, we are risking our own WC campaign. We are throwing our players into an intensive set of qualifiers without doing anything to ensure they are properly prepared in terms of rest and prep. We are treating them as raw meat, as cannon fodder, for what purpose? We are not properly prepping as half our starters are away; any psychological edge or even winning is only relative (last time we won we were immediately bitch-slapped like idiots in WC qualifying) 

So this GC squad is in good part irresponsible. 

I'll watch, I want us to win. And even if we win, it basically gives us almost nothing going forward except some iffy notion of mental edge or whatever Herdman would spin it. And the drawbacks outweigh any purported positive.

 

So Mexico is being irresponsible? I guess every team/player in the Euros and Copa America is being irresponsible.

Funny how this only applies to the Gold Cup. Nonsense.

It's actually unbelievable that some here could post this way. Yes, let's follow Canadian soccer religiously daily but then when it comes to a tournament we can win... oh let's just leave off our generational talent. Sure, let's let Davies go play preseason and risk injury there rather than for the country we follow. 

Yes, we're definitely harming our chances for WCQ by actually playing together... the players would be much better off preparing for their club seasons. Is this not essentially a preseason/prep for our WCQ? Absolute lunacy by those who just want to go against the grain.

 

Edited July 9, 2021 by CanadaFan123

[Obinna]

I for one am definitely more pumped about the Gold Cup than Euros and the Copa America.

In years past I would treat the Euros like the World Cup and watch every minute of every game without fail, and I would plan my day around it. Now I couldn't be fussed if I miss a game. Actually, I have missed more than I have seen, and I can probably count on 1 hand how many games I have watched from beginning to end. Usually it's 30 minutes here, 20 minutes there, but then something more important comes up that grabs my attention. After all, there is no dog in the fight for me.

Gold Cup will be completely different. I am going to watch every Canada game religiously, and I will be hard pressed to miss any of the other matches, especially the ones in our group. 

So needless to say, I absolutely support us bringing a strong team so we can win this thing. I am not mad at players like David, Hutchinson and Arfield for staying out to club prep, it's fine. The core of the team is there and it gives others a chance to step up. It's all good!

[scullion44]

Curacao dropping out?

 

 

[WestHamCanadianinOxford]

We have a group of young guys that will be leaders for at least the next two World Cup cycles.  Do people honestly think that giving them a taste of winning something real in red and white will have no effect on how ( or even whether) they use their talents for the national team in the coming years.

[Free kick]

45 minutes ago, nazzer said:

Never gonna happen as long as the tournament sells the tickets it does in the USA

Plus,  has any other country ever shown a interest in hosting whole tournament? I have never heard of any country, including canada/CSA, ever state and interest.  
 

[Obinna]

Just now, scullion44 said:

Curacao dropping out?

 

 

This is getting ridiculous. PCR tests that generate a positive result are not necessarily the same as being clinically diagnosed with covid-19. At some point we need to differentiate, because if Curacao are forced to pull out because 50% of their squad (surely some of which are likely vaccinated) are testing positive without symptoms, that's kind of insane. 

Not saying that's what's happening, because for all I know several of the players are experiencing symptoms, just saying we need to find a balance when it comes to this stuff. 

[SpecialK]

23 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

So Mexico is being irresponsible? I guess every team/player in the Euros and Copa America is being irresponsible.

The difference between us and Mexico and Euros and the big teams of Copa America is Depth. Yes our Depth is better but it’s not at the level of Mexico or big European or South American teams. We can’t replace Fonzie if he does down or is tired. We don’t have a player that even close to his level. 

mexico is under a lot of pressure to win something. If they won nations league we wouldn’t be seeing a strong team like they have at Gold Cup. They truly believe they’re Way ahead of the competition in WCQ so they can take a risk. 
 

I totally understand the arguments that we need to win,  winning is important. I am all about winning. But it’s a huge risk bring in super star player, when they have already played a full club season plus tons of games for nations league and WQC. Do you know how much money The CSA will get if we qualify for the World Cup and if we got out the our group in the World Cup and what that would do for our program ? 
 

so I ask you all what’s bigger and more important? Going to a World Cup and being seen globally, changing the view of Canadian football and the money that will bank roll our program for years to come. Or playing Haiti or a B/C US team  in a gold cup that if we win what does it change oh hey we got a trophy. 

[Obinna]

Just now, SpecialK said:

The difference between us and Mexico and Euros and the big teams of Copa America is Depth. Yes our Depth is better but it’s not at the level of Mexico or big European or South American teams. We can’t replace Fonzie if he does down or is tired. We don’t have a player that even close to his level. 

I don't even think Bayern can replace Fonzie. 

[Kadenge]

I gotta say, I am a bit nervous of playing Davies vs Haiti

[CanadaFan123]

5 minutes ago, SpecialK said:

The difference between us and Mexico and Euros and the big teams of Copa America is Depth. Yes our Depth is better but it’s not at the level of Mexico or big European or South American teams. We can’t replace Fonzie if he does down or is tired. We don’t have a player that even close to his level. 

We can't control the first scenario. As you have been told countless times he would be risking injury even if he was with Bayern. In fact, he is probably more at risk in a friendly vs. inferior opponents than a continental competition. 

He will not be tired. He's 20 years old. If he needs a rest Bayern will give him one. You're acting like WCQ start 2 days after this tournament.

[Aird25]

12 minutes ago, SpecialK said:

so I ask you all what’s bigger and more important? Going to a World Cup and being seen globally, changing the view of Canadian football and the money that will bank roll our program for years to come. Or playing Haiti or a B/C US team  in a gold cup that if we win what does it change oh hey we got a trophy. 

Lol if only hypothetical scenarios were options. I'll take (C): Both

Edited July 9, 2021 by Aird25

[CanadaFan123]

1 minute ago, Aird25 said:

Lol if only hypothetical scenarios were options

And I love the "if we win what does it change?"... uhhh? Because winning trophies doesn't matter?

We would be one of 3 continental champions in 2021 along with England/Italy and Brazil/Argentina. That will open more than a few eyes.