WCQ: Third Round - Window 2 (October 7-13, 2021)

[trc2014]

4 minutes ago, Cblake said:

It is all hands on deck, no one is getting a few days in Jamaica while the teams has a huge game in Mexico. You can not underestimate how big even a single point out of Azteca would be for this team, it could be game changing, the difference in making it to Qatar or not. I would not be just one point for Canada but denying two for Mexico. 

Denying two points for Mexico is extremely irrelevant in the grand scheme.  They are finishing first.  1 point in Mexico and then 0 points in Jamaica would be a big miss IMO.

[Cblake]

1 hour ago, canuckgbp said:

 

It is going to be key getting out of the gate quick and having so many players coming in on Monday, thus having very little time to prepare Herdman will have some choices to make. Are the above mentioned Covid concerns just a protocol thing or is there something here to be worried about

[Cblake]

3 minutes ago, trc2014 said:

Denying two points for Mexico is extremely irrelevant in the grand scheme.  They are finishing first.  1 point in Mexico and then 0 points in Jamaica would be a big miss IMO.

Do not ever assume things, no one in their right mind would have ever thought the US was going to miss out on the 2018. Plus it was Zusi who saved the Mexicans asses in the 2014 campaign. Lots can happen between now and March. Every point is important and one should never be looked at like it is at the expense of another. 

[dyslexic nam]

All I know is that these games are fast approaching and I am excited as hell.

Dam I am glad we did the job against Haiti and Suriname to make the Octo.  I know we were expected to, but regardless of the outcome of this process, this will have been a massive series of games for our guys.  The irony is that in the midst of a global pandemic we have been treated to a feast of international footy.  

[RS]

41 minutes ago, Cblake said:

Is the team meeting in Toronto first or down south, I wonder what the arrival schedule is for the players.

Probably Florida.

[trc2014]

3 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

All I know is that these games are fast approaching and I am excited as hell.

Dam I am glad we did the job against Haiti and Suriname to make the Octo.  I know we were expected to, but regardless of the outcome of this process, this will have been a massive series of games for our guys.  The irony is that in the midst of a global pandemic we have been treated to a feast of international footy.  

Pre Suriname game is and I’m sure will be for awhile my highest stress level pre-game for CDNMT (beating out the non-spoken about game in Honduras)

[Cblake]

Just now, RS said:

Probably Florida.

That makes total sense, easy place to get players into and the climate closer to what they will be facing in the first two games. 

[king1010]

24 minutes ago, Cblake said:

It is all hands on deck, no one is getting a few days in Jamaica while the teams has a huge game in Mexico. You can not underestimate how big even a single point out of Azteca would be for this team, it could be game changing, the difference in making it to Qatar or not. I would not be just one point for Canada but denying two for Mexico. 

Denying Mexico two is irrelevant. Theyre going to qualify whether we tie them or not. 
 

beating panama and getting a result against jamaica is so much more important than tying mexico away. Next window when we only have two home games, hell ya we need a draw against mexico in edmonton. 
 

we need to think strategically, not irrationally. Especially with up to 5 key players not there for game 1 in mexico. 

Edited October 1, 2021 by king1010

[Cblake]

6 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

All I know is that these games are fast approaching and I am excited as hell.

Dam I am glad we did the job against Haiti and Suriname to make the Octo.  I know we were expected to, but regardless of the outcome of this process, this will have been a massive series of games for our guys.  The irony is that in the midst of a global pandemic we have been treated to a feast of international footy.  

It certainly is exciting times for soccer in Canada. This is a huge opportunity for the men and I believe they have the talent to be in the fight for a ticket to Qatar. The X11 is right up there with best. It is time to make the most of this opportunity. 

[trc2014]

6 hours ago, trc2014 said:

I’m surprised Platt thinks we should field our strongest team against Mexico and ‘go for it’, real mistake in my mind.  Not surprised Gareth feels that way haha.

Another silly aspect of this line up is that we have 5 players in the line-up on yellows and he is starting 4 of them in front of a referee who gave out 11 yellows he last reduced for Canada at the gold cup.  I guess a good opportunity if you want to seek out those strategic yellows?  Would be easy enough haha.

[Free kick]

30 minutes ago, trc2014 said:

Another silly aspect of this line up is that we have 5 players in the line-up on yellows and he is starting 4 of them in front of a referee who gave out 11 yellows he last reduced for Canada at the gold cup.  I guess a good opportunity if you want to seek out those strategic yellows?  Would be easy enough haha.

Too many wingers and wing backs.    I know i mentioned it earlier, but what are you going to do with all those players whose game is to play down the flanks.  Moreso given that we are playing a back three and our very best talent are wide players.   Even though there are three games, they cant all play.   Its like for this squad,  Herdman was just looking for bodies instead of fit.   With that extra allowance of players, we could have used more depth in the middle of the pitch instead.
 

Edited October 1, 2021 by Free kick

[SpursFlu]

Send your starting 11 to Jamaica 

See if Shaffelburg and the lot can punt the ball in to the azteca stands for 90 minutes. Call it a protest against the puto chant or something 

Edited October 1, 2021 by SpursFlu

[Ruud]

1 hour ago, Cblake said:

It is all hands on deck, no one is getting a few days in Jamaica while the teams has a huge game in Mexico. You can not underestimate how big even a single point out of Azteca would be for this team, it could be game changing, the difference in making it to Qatar or not. I would not be just one point for Canada but denying two for Mexico. 

Denying two for Mexico means nothing.  Yes one would be important but playing at altitude is not what players can recover from easily.   Look at Jamaica losing at home after their first game at altitude 

[frmr]

You're all gonna feel real silly when we play a weak team in Mexico, get hammered 4-0 and then miss out on Qatar on goal differential.

[trc2014]

4 minutes ago, frmr said:

You're all gonna feel real silly when we play a weak team in Mexico, get hammered 4-0 and then miss out on Qatar on goal differential.

In this situation my first thought would be dropped points in game 1 to Honduras.

[dyslexic nam]

3 minutes ago, frmr said:

You're all gonna feel real silly when we play a weak team in Mexico, get hammered 4-0 and then miss out on Qatar on goal differential.

I would counter that people will feel far more exasperated if we go all out guns blazing against Mexico and lose anyway - then drop points against Jamaica or Panama because a few of our key guys are either injured or absolutely gassed and can’t get the job done.  

I get that there are differences of opinion on the subject, but for me there are realistically 6 points up for grabs in this window - and none of them are in Mexico.  

[frmr]

2 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

I would counter that people will feel far more exasperated if we go all out guns blazing against Mexico and lose anyway - then drop points against Jamaica or Panama because a few of our key guys are either injured or absolutely gassed and can’t get the job done.  

I get that there are differences of opinion on the subject, but for me there are realistically 6 points up for grabs in this window - and none of them are in Mexico.  

Yeah it's a tough call to make, but we've showed that we can hang with Mexico during the Gold Cup. I'm of the opinion we can go Mexico and get three points. I really believe that, and I have a hunch that Herdman has the boys believing it as well.

[Floortom]

2 minutes ago, frmr said:

Yeah it's a tough call to make, but we've showed that we can hang with Mexico during the Gold Cup. I'm of the opinion we can go Mexico and get three points. I really believe that, and I have a hunch that Herdman has the boys believing it as well.

The whole "hanging with Mexico during the Gold Cup" is overrated. Trinidad drew them the same tournament. El Salvador also played them closely and was the better team the second half. People overrate close losses way too much. 

 

Our chance for points against Mexico will be at home in November. We can really go for it then

Edited October 1, 2021 by Floortom

[frmr]

Just now, Floortom said:

The whole "hanging with Mexico during the Gold Cup" is overrated. Trinidad drew them the same tournament. El Salvador also played them closely and was the better team the second half. People overrate close losses way too much. 

I'm not overrating a close loss. I don't think we're that far off from Mexico. The days of Mexico being this massive juggernaut in the region and us being the tiny little pathetic attempt of a team are long gone. Canada is a dangerous fucking team and I wouldn't put it past us to beat any team home or away in these qualifications. We should have beaten US away and I wouldn't be surprised if we went to Mexico and shocked everyone.

[archer21]

37 minutes ago, Free kick said:

Too many wingers and wing backs.    I know i mentioned it earlier, but what are you going to do with all those players whose game is to play down the flanks.  Moreso given that we are playing a back three and our very best talent are wide players.   Even though there are three games, they cant all play.   Its like for this squad,  Herdman was just looking for bodies instead of fit.   With that extra allowance of players, we could have used more depth in the middle of the pitch instead.
 

A lot of people keep saying this, but Herdman has shown that he’s willing to change formation from game to game as well as in game. We often play a 3-4-3 with 2 wingbacks and 2 wingers. We also switch to 4 at the back mid game and have started with 4 at the back at times, although not as much lately. Other than Brym, I don’t see any reason that any of the wingers or wingbacks should have been left out.

[johnyb]

To we're playing Mexico first because if you had to pick a game for someone to miss due to Yellow card accumulation that would probably be the one. Playing them hard may lead to someone we can't risk losing not being available for games 5 or 6.

[footballfreak]

Here’s another way to think about the problem. 

Say you do go all out and play your best available 11 against Mexico. Minimum 5 outfield players are going to play all 90 mins in Mexico City at altitude. Jamaica match starts ~67 hours after that, including a travel day. Whoever those 5 are will be absolutely gassed and good for 45-60 mins at the absolute most. Probably less.

Assuming everything goes right and we challenge for a point or points in MEX. Who are those 5 guys? Because they’re not going to give you nearly as much as you want them to against Jamaica.

 

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

1 hour ago, RS said:

Probably Florida.

They need to get to Mexico City as soon as possible to be at altitude. Denver might be acceptable.

EDIT:

@RS Florida is a good idea for the January window. Maybe even a Camp Poutine match in Florida prior to playing Honduras.

Edited October 1, 2021 by Olympique_de_Marseille

[Obinna]

Just now, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

They need to get to Mexico City as soon as possible to be at altitude. Denver might be acceptable.

But just as important, that's one less ticket the CSA has to book!

And less money for travel means more money for.......

[Joe MacCarthy]

8 minutes ago, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

They need to get to Mexico City as soon as possible to be at altitude. Denver might be acceptable

Before the Mexico 1986 WC, we trained in Colorado Springs.  It is a fair statement to say we were among the fittest teams at that WC and that helped keep us from being embarrassed.   Going from memory, I think a read in the official FIFA report they stated we were the fittest team.