GC: Canada vs Mexico - Thursday, July 29th, 10pm Eastern / 7pm Pacific - Houston TX

[SoccMan]

2 hours ago, Obinna said:

Guys we're not going to park the bus against Mexico. We may put 11 men behind the ball to hold the result in the dying minutes, but we're going to go toe-to-toe with them.

If we park the bus then it will feel like no progress has been over these past few years if they resort to playing Mexico the way they have mainly played Mexico over the years . Off topic soccer needs to bloody make some fucken changes to this sport, these yellow card accumulation bullshit is a joke . Can you imagine hockey having players miss games because of penalty accumulation like say in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs with the chance of big stars that can make differences in games having to miss a big deciding playoff game . This is a joke of a rule and would take it further even the two yellow card rule and miss the next game is a joke !

[CanadaFan123]

Just now, SoccMan said:

If we park the bus then it will feel like no progress has been over these past few years if they resort to playing Mexico the way they have mainly played Mexico over the years . Off topic soccer needs to bloody make some fucken changes to this sport, these yellow card accumulation bullshit is a joke . Can you imagine hockey having players miss games because of penalty accumulation like say in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs with the chance of big stars that can make differences in games having to miss a big deciding playoff game . This is a joke of a rule and would take it further even the two yellow card rule and miss the next game is a joke !

It is a joke. And the beneficiary is always a team that you never even played. Even the suspension after a red card is silly. Unless it was an unconscionable challenge there is no need for it - the punishment is your team playing down a man.

[Obinna]

13 minutes ago, El Diego said:

I have noticed he is quite good at long diagonals when he has time, but I worry about line splitters through the middle, or how he will handle pressure. Then again, Vitoria had that brutal give away versus Martinique.

Fair enough. I am more concerned about how he'll handle being pressured than playing line splitters, but I am not too concerned overall because 1) He looked good the last game he played in the middle (Suriname?) and 2) He shouldn't really be pressured much from the middle. If he is being pressured we are in trouble, but from that position he should have time and space to pick his head up and play a pass. 

Worth mentioning that he plays in the middle for his club. Obviously Mexico are better than your average K-League team, but I still think/hope the drop off won't be huge between Vitoria and Henry. 

[El Diego]

1 minute ago, Obinna said:

Fair enough. I am more concerned about how he'll handle being pressured than playing line splitters, but I am not too concerned overall because 1) He looked good the last game he played in the middle (Suriname?) and 2) He shouldn't really be pressured much from the middle. If he is being pressured we are in trouble, but from that position he should have time and space to pick his head up and play a pass. 

Worth mentioning that he plays in the middle for his club. Obviously Mexico are better than your average K-League team, but I still think/hope the drop off won't be huge between Vitoria and Henry. 

Yes I remember watching a couple of his games in the K-League and he looked comfortable defensively in the middle of a three. I think he likes it better there than on the outside.

[SoccMan]

4 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

It is a joke. And the beneficiary is always a team that you never even played. Even the suspension after a red card is silly. Unless it was an unconscionable challenge there is no need for it - the punishment is your team playing down a man.

There are a few more changes that would really improve this game and I really think that the vast majority of fans would like to see changes made . Like even the granting of a penalty for some calls is far too harsh . A penalty call for some of these hand ball calls are a joke too and that call if a goal is scored can decide a goal it should not be that way but it is unfortunately, but want to stop hijacking this thread and get back to the topic , maybe someone can start a thread on changes they would like to see made to the game because to me they are so many this game needs.

[costarg]

42 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

Can you imagine hockey having players miss games because of penalty accumulation like say in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs with the chance of big stars that can make differences in games having to miss a big deciding playoff game .

The NHL equivalent is having stars miss big games and playoffs due to targeted head shots, and everyone knows the NHL supports those, it helps sell tickets in fact.

[Metro]

2 hours ago, CanadaFan123 said:

Our press last match was deadly. The concern about Mexico breaking our lines is valid but then again it is against any decent team (i.e. Costa Rica). Everyone has to be tuned in and ready to react/win balls in midfield. This is where we might want a midfield duo of Piette and Eustaquio. The only reservation I have about that is the chemistry between Kaye and Stache + the added height Kaye gives us off set pieces, which will be big for us.

 

Edit: It looks like Kaye has been traded to Colorado FWIW.

Wow, really!  Thanks for the heads up re Kaye!

I think however, it is imperative Kaye is selected over Piette.  I am just as worried as anyone of Kaye making that bonehead move, but a certain amount of possession against Mexico is critical in defeating them.  Piette is less capable of playing the possession game, IMO.

[Metro]

58 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

It is a joke. And the beneficiary is always a team that you never even played. Even the suspension after a red card is silly. Unless it was an unconscionable challenge there is no need for it - the punishment is your team playing down a man.

But that IS what happens in other sports, right?  If one player commits a violent act in one match, it is possible he will be suspended for one or more of his team's next matches and the team they play against will not necessarily be the team the player committed the violent act against.

I think what makes this particular situation intolerable is CONCACAF referees tend to be, how shall I say this....putridly awful. 😄 

[CanadaFan123]

2 minutes ago, Metro said:

But that IS what happens in other sports, right?  If one player commits a violent act in one match, it is possible he will be suspended for one or more of his team's next matches and the team they play against will not necessarily be the team the player committed the violent act against.

I think what makes this particular situation intolerable is CONCACAF referees tend to be, how shall I say this....putridly awful. 😄 

I'm okay with violent acts that are worthy of suspension. But in footy yellows/reds often aren't violent - they could be tactical or you could push the envelope just a little too much. 

[BearcatSA]

1 hour ago, Obinna said:

Worth mentioning that he plays in the middle for his club. Obviously Mexico are better than your average K-League team, but I still think/hope the drop off won't be huge between Vitoria and Henry. 

If he has a tough match, well, it's a damn good opponent.  So be it.  With the key personnel absences, we have become a significant underdog here.  But the pressure is entirely on Tata and El Tri  .  We have to conjure up some of that TFC CCL run magic for this one.  Keep things tight but release the Tajon on counters along with Laryea, keep the ball as long as possible through Osorio, Staq and Kaye to stifle their rhythm, don't lose our shape if we fall behind and just keep pounding the rock for an equalizer, or be prepared for extra time and possibly a shoot out, hopefully with our best penalty taker (Hoillet) still on the field to score one of the goals, and go from there. 

And we need to capitalize on our set pieces.  A big strength of Henry is his aerial threat from dead ball service.  Scoring off of one of those opportunities could be the margin of difference here.

Edited July 27, 2021 by BearcatSA

[Lansdude]

17 minutes ago, BearcatSA said:

If he has a tough match, well, it's a damn good opponent.  So be it.  With the key personnel absences, we have become a significant underdog here.  But the pressure is entirely on Tata and El Tri  .  We have to conjure up some of that TFC CCL run magic for this one.  Keep things tight but release the Tajon on counters along with Laryea, keep the ball as long as possible through Osorio, Staq and Kaye to stifle their rhythm, don't lose our shape if we fall behind and just keep pounding the rock for an equalizer, or be prepared for extra time and possibly a shoot out, hopefully with our best penalty taker (Hoillet) still on the field to score one of the goals, and go from there. 

And we need to capitalize on our set pieces.  A big strength of Henry is his aerial threat from dead ball service.  Scoring off of one of those opportunities could be the margin of difference here.

Yup, we need to capitalize on Eustaquio's dead ball delivery. Would be huge if could finally turn in a goal from a situation like that. That should be a strength of this team.

[CanadaFan123]

Just thinking about how we could employ a 4-2-2-2 here and I like it. 

 

-----------Hoilett---Buchanan-------------

------------Kaye---Osorio----------------

------------Piette--Eustaquio-------------

Laryea-----Miller----Henry------Johnston

----------------Crepeau---------------

[Lansdude]

2 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

Just thinking about how we could employ a 4-2-2-2 here and I like it. 

 

-----------Hoilett---Buchanan-------------

------------Kaye---Osorio----------------

------------Piette--Eustaquio-------------

Laryea-----Miller----Henry------Johnston

----------------Crepeau---------------

We did frustrate the US in Toronto with a nice fluid box... But others have said Mexico will not be looking for penetration through the middle - gotta be honest, I haven't watched them play this tourney so I don't know what their tendencies/strengths are with the current setup.

[BearcatSA]

14 minutes ago, Lansdude said:

Yup, we need to capitalize on Eustaquio's dead ball delivery. Would be huge if could finally turn in a goal from a situation like that. That should be a strength of this team.

The only negative of the CR game was that I felt we should have been able to generate more bona fide scoring chances from those situations.

[Lansdude]

1 minute ago, BearcatSA said:

The only negative of the CR game was that I felt we should have been able to generate more bona fide scoring chances from those situations.

Was it the Haiti match where he went back post from the corner to Vitoria several times and it almost worked? More of that, we have the height.

[CanadaFan123]

5 minutes ago, Lansdude said:

We did frustrate the US in Toronto with a nice fluid box... But others have said Mexico will not be looking for penetration through the middle - gotta be honest, I haven't watched them play this tourney so I don't know what their tendencies/strengths are with the current setup.

On paper it looks centrally focused, but I don't recall us being exposed on the wings vs. the USA at home and you'll recall their best player, Pulisic, was actually stifled out there.

[frmr]

In terms of WCQ, this is probably the best outcome we could have hoped for in terms of preparing our squad for those big games. The big boys that are missing have pretty much all already experienced games as big as this semi-final. Phonzie obviously has played the biggest game in club football, David played the biggest game you can really play in French football in the final game of the season (and got MOTM), Larin and Hutch playing in title winning games. So really those players don't really *need* to play in this game because they've experienced that pressure, so with the squad that we have left for this game it's basically spreading that high pressure experience as wide as possible, since basically none of the players left in this GC squad have experienced that before. So now we'll have a whole B team who is battle tested going into WCQ, which should be very helpful in not letting the occasion get to them.

[JohnnyFranchise]

22 hours ago, trc2014 said:

I’m clearly biased, but that first touch from Hastings on the winner is still one of the best I’ve ever seen.

i don't know, i'd say the first touch was a lucky bounce off his knee. but the burst and slide to get the shot off was outstanding. and the run from the top of the canadian box like he was shot out of a cannon! 💥

[JohnnyFranchise]

6 hours ago, N1ckbr0wn said:

How would y’all feel about this vs Mexico? We have so many players out or missing and this lineup still looks strong to me. 
 

 

i might exchange kaye for piette but i love it.

[Free kick]

3 hours ago, SoccMan said:

Can you imagine hockey having players miss games because of penalty accumulation like say in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs with the chance of big stars that can make differences in games having to miss a big deciding playoff game . This is a joke of a rule and would take it further even the two yellow card rule and miss the next game is a joke !

You have good point overall.  But i dont agree that the sport of hockey has it right either.   In hockey there is no distinction between that fouls/penalties that just impede a player and the fouls/that could injure a player.   They are awarded most often a two minute penalty either or irrespective of what type of infraction it is or when it occurs in a game.  Thats not right either in my opinion. Its a part of hockey i hate.   In soccer, the impeding infractions are most often not issued a card whereas a dangerous foul that warrants a card, has a carry over effect to the next matches.   This is how it should be.  

In hockey,  you could slash a player at the ankles or wrists in the last minute of playoff game that is already decided and there is no carry over punishment.   So why not go at key opponent in the last 30 secs of a playoff game when it will only cost you 30 seconds in the box and the benefit is that keys opponent might be out for the series.   As an example:  see Webers slash on Kucharov in this years playoff. 

 

Edited July 27, 2021 by Free kick

[CanadaFan123]

3 minutes ago, Free kick said:

You have good point overall.  But i dont agree that the sport of hockey has it right either.   In hockey there is no distinction between that fouls/penalties that just impede a player and the fouls/that could injure a player.   They are awarded most often a two minute penalty either or irrespective of what type of infraction it is or when it occurs in a game.  Thats not right either in my opinion. Its a part of hockey i hate.   In soccer, the impeding infractions are most often not issued a card whereas a dangerous foul that warrants a card, has a carry over effect to the next matches.   This is how it should be.  

In hockey,  you could slash a player at the ankles or wrists in the last minute of playoff game that is already decided and there is no carry over punishment.   So why not go at key opponent in the last 30 secs of a playoff game when it will only cost you 30 seconds in the box and the benefit is that keys opponent might be out for the series.  

 

Because that likely wouldn't just cost you 30 seconds. You would get suspended.

[Free kick]

4 hours ago, CanadaFan123 said:

Because that likely wouldn't just cost you 30 seconds. You would get suspended.

But they dont suspend.    You almost have to commit murder to get suspended in the playoffs. Will a cross check to a player’s injured ribs (when you know he has a rib injury) earn you a suspension?

Edited July 28, 2021 by Free kick

[CanadaFan123]

6 minutes ago, Free kick said:

But they dont suspend.    You almost have to commit murder to get suspended innthe playoffs. Will a cross check to a player’s injured ribs (when you know he has a rib injuspry) earn you a suspension?

Well you're specifically talking about a slash that injured a player and kept him out. If that happened, which would be a pretty hefty and likely obvious slash, there would certainly be a suspension. Regarding your cross check example I suppose you could probably get away with it.

[RS]

I'm just posting in here so everyone knows how important I think this tournament is.

[JohnnyFranchise]

7 minutes ago, RS said:

I'm just posting in here so everyone knows how important I think this tournament is.

well that post wins the internet for today. congratulations.