WCQ: Mexico vs Canada - Thursday, Oct 7, 9:40pm Eastern / 6:40pm Pacific - Mexico City

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

World Cup Qualifiers - Matchday 4
Mexico vs Canada
Thursday, October 7th
9:40pm Eastern / 6:40pm
Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
Online Broadcast: ONESoccer
TV Broadcast: Telus Channel 980, Sportsnet 360 (EN) , RDS (FR)

 

Referee:
Ismael Alexander Cornejo Melendez
https://twitter.com/desigarbitrales/status/1444776131480199169
(Replaced the original referee due to COVID

 

The Canadian squad:

http://www.twitter.com/CanadaSoccerEN/status/1443992293015527429
https://canadasoccer.com/news/canada-soccer-announces-fifa-world-cup-qualifiers-squad-for-october-matches/ 
27 players (for now)

Canadian players that are in the squad but that have been ruled out through travel restrictions:

Hoilett
Wotherspoon

Canadian players that are in the squad but that may not play due to fitness/injury/illness:
Cavallini
Hutchinson
Larin
Borjan

EDIT: Matchday squad with St. Clair added

 

 

 

Canadian players that are on a yellow card:
Adekugbe
Buchanan
Kaye
Laryea
Vitória
----

The Mexican squad:
http://www.twitter.com/miseleccionmx/status/1443789015702859781
https://miseleccion.mx/noticias/3671/Convocatoria%20de%20la%20Selecci%C3%B3n%20Nacional%20de%20M%C3%A9xico%20para%20la%20clasificatoria%20de%20Octubre

 

No injuries of suspensions that I am aware of for Mexico

Edited October 10, 2021 by Olympique_de_Marseille

[trc2014]

Should add that Hoilett isn’t making the trip...

[Cblake]

31 minutes ago, trc2014 said:

Should add that Hoilett isn’t making the trip...

What trip to, just to Mexico or is it unkown at this point

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

8 hours ago, Cblake said:

What trip to, just to Mexico or is it unkown at this point

I think it's just for the Mexico match.

9 hours ago, CanadaFan123 said:

I really doubt we see Brym.

That's why I feel Brym is in the squad.

Herdman picked a guy who played on the Friday who can run his butt off this Thursday without needing to worry about match #5 and #6.

Bayern and Lille both play on Sunday. I don' think Herdman plays David and Davies until the 60th minute and that is unless we still have a shot at beating (or drawing) Mexico.

Edited October 2, 2021 by Olympique_de_Marseille

[canuckgbp]

I’ve seen it said this is the ref that was card happy during that Gold Cup Martinique game where we had 6 yellows? 

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

27 minutes ago, canuckgbp said:

I’ve seen it said this is the ref that was card happy during that Gold Cup Martinique game where we had 6 yellows? 

Yes. It is Mr. Six Yellow Cards.

[Kadenge]

1 hour ago, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

I think it's just for the Mexico match.

That's why I feel Brym is in the squad.

Herdman picked a guy who played on the Friday who can run his butt off this Thursday without needing to worry about match #5 and #6.

Bayern and Lille both play on Sunday. I don' think Herdman plays David and Davies until the 60th minute and that is unless we still have a shot at beating (or drawing) Mexico.

You think Brym is capable of running his butt off? How did that work out during Concacaf OQ? Would rather Millar start up front as  he does work his butt off and is solid defensively.

Edited October 2, 2021 by Kadenge

[Cblake]

Squad rotation will play a big part here, I do not envy the position Herdman is in trying to figure this all out. These three game breaks were always going to present some unique challenges that that teams especially the coaches have never faced before. While I am never a fan of outright conceding points, you can certainly map out a plan of attack give them  in their eyes the best opportunity to maximize points. For instance keeping Alphonso and say Jonathan fresh by using them in the final 30 of the match at Mexico if needed could be one way to go. But how cool would it be to get a point out of Azteca but as other have said you do not want to do it at the expense of the other more winnable games.

[CanadaFan123]

49 minutes ago, Kadenge said:

You think Brym is capable of running his butt off? How did that work out during Concacaf OQ? Would rather Millar start up front as  he does work his butt off and is solid defensively.

Exactly why I don’t think Brym plays. He was out of his depth in an empty stadium in Guadalajara vs U23 sides... it would be foolish when we have so many other options.

Only 2 of David, Larin, Cavallini and Millar can start a match with our formations. So pick your two and the options off the bench are the other two .. or even Buchanan, Davies.. or play with one striker and use an extra mid. Then you factor in Hoilett who is going to be fresh for the last 2 games so you figure we can burn out at least one of the aforementioned forwards in Mexico..
 

I don’t see why/how Brym would see any time. 

 

Edited October 2, 2021 by CanadaFan123

[trc2014]

47 minutes ago, Kadenge said:

You think Brym is capable of running his butt off? How did that work out during Concacaf OQ? Would rather Millar start up front as  he does work his butt off and is solid defensively.

I honestly don’t think I’ve said this of a Canada player before, I’ll be very disappointed if I see Brym in a game.  I literally thought he may have been the worst player on the pitch at the Olympic qualifying.  Bair a close second (don’t tell the guys at the Third Sub podcast haha).

[VinceA]

I don't see Brym playing at all this window. I'll be very surprised if he does.

[Cblake]

1 hour ago, VinceA said:

I don't see Brym playing at all this window. I'll be very surprised if he does.

Reminds me of when Noble Okello was the 23rd man on the Gold Cup team, no one expected him to take the field. But you never know ...

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

2 hours ago, Kadenge said:

You think Brym is capable of running his butt off? How did that work out during Concacaf OQ? Would rather Millar start up front as  he does work his butt off and is solid defensively.

1) Yes I think Brym is capable or running his butt off and pressing the Mexicans.

2) I would rather have Millar too but Millar plays on the Sunday instead if the Friday.

---

No offence to Brym but Millar is more likely to get playing time in the other two matches.

One of the main theories on this board is "Herman will not play his best XI against Mexico" and yet where does Brym fit in if not for this Mexico match?

[CanadaFan123]

1 minute ago, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

1) Yes I think Brym is capable or running his butt off and pressing the Mexicans.

2) I would rather have Millar too but Millar plays on the Sunday instead if the Friday.

---

No offence to Brym but Millar is more likely to get playing time in the other two matches.

One of the main theories on this board is "Herman will not play his best XI against Mexico" and yet where does Brym fit in if not for this Mexico match?

He’s there for insurance/training. Larin isn’t playing today for Besiktas and we’ll see about Cavallini tonight. They’ll need someone to fill in at training if they’re not fully fit but I think a couple more dominos will have to fall before he’s in line for actual game time.

[jtpc]

3 hours ago, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

Yes. It is Mr. Six Yellow Cards.

Let's hope we get the September window version of him and not the Gold Cup version. He refereed the Panama/Costa Rica match last month and gave out 1 yellow to each team.

[Floortom]

1 minute ago, CanadaFan123 said:

He’s there for insurance/training. Larin isn’t playing today for Besiktas and we’ll see about Cavallini tonight. They’ll need someone to fill in at training if they’re not fully fit but I think a couple more dominos will have to fall before he’s in line for actual game time.

Yah I have to believe he’s a body for training purposes. He can also be a guy you throw out there in a blow out scenario. I don’t believe there’s any chance of him playing in a meaningful situation, unless we’re totally depleted by injuries.

[CanadaFan123]

18 minutes ago, Floortom said:

Yah I have to believe he’s a body for training purposes. He can also be a guy you throw out there in a blow out scenario. I don’t believe there’s any chance of him playing in a meaningful situation, unless we’re totally depleted by injuries.

I think that may also explain why he’s called before Akindele. He’s younger so it’s a development opportunity whereas Akindele would be missing club time where he could play. 

[LeoH037]

5 hours ago, Olympique_de_Marseille said:

Bayern and Lille both play on Sunday. I don' think Herdman plays David and Davies until the 60th minute and that is unless we still have a shot at beating (or drawing) Mexico.

If I'm Herdman, and we are tied or losing by 1 goal by the 70th minute, I throw in all the big guns then, cause with them on the field we definitely have a shot at getting something.

[Kadenge]

I trust Herdman with player management. He is meticulous on details. We did well in window 1 by getting the tie away v USA. Not many had predicted that, but we did drop 2 points v Honduras. So we are  down net 1 point from what would have been expected results 5 v 6. The other team results were surprising and help us, but at the end , I feel we still need to pick up the 1 point we "dropped". So where do we pick up that 1 point?   I agree  we need to focus on Jamaica and Panama. I'm not sure JH uses the same strategy he did v Mexico in the 2019 GC.

[Approve My Account Pls]

4 hours ago, trc2014 said:

I honestly don’t think I’ve said this of a Canada player before, I’ll be very disappointed if I see Brym in a game.  I literally thought he may have been the worst player on the pitch at the Olympic qualifying.  Bair a close second (don’t tell the guys at the Third Sub podcast haha).

Actually I'll be ecstatic if he gets into a game because it means we're pumping in goals early and often and can rest the big boys... but I agree, if he gets into meaningful minutes it's not great

[trc2014]

I was hoping they would make the Panama game, guess not.  Just lost more than 50% of the goals scored from the first window.  With no Larin officially, I’m now more baffled that Akindele didn’t get called as it feels to me Brym is going to get minutes.  Also, means Arfield is realllllly down the depth chart now.

Edited October 2, 2021 by trc2014

[trc2014]

Another analyst who wants to start Canada’s best available 11 against Mexico.  Am I missing something with this strategy?

[dyslexic nam]

If it was up to me, I would start a defensively minded 4-5-1 with a double pivot CDM.  Not sure about the wings but Laryea is used to bombing up and down the field, and I think that Millar can run all day.   Fitness will be a big determining factor in this game so the starters would be expected to give it everything they had for 60 minutes.  After the hour mark, we would send out the heavy hitters.  Options would include Davies for Millar, Buchanan for Laryea, David for Hoilett, and I would put on Oso for Piette and move him into a more attacking role.   This would be to try and secure 1 or 3 points, or if we are down 2+ goals it would most likely just give them a 30 minute run-out to work out the kinks and do a bit of damage control with player egos by ensuring that they get to play on the biggest stage.

I suspect this last consideration (pride and ego) will ultimately cause Herdman to start something pretty close to our best 11 available, but it isn’t the approach I would use.  

 

Edited October 2, 2021 by dyslexic nam

[Floortom]

1 minute ago, dyslexic nam said:

If it was up to me, I would start a defensively minded 4-5-1 with a double pivot CDM.  Not sure about the wings but Laryea is used to bombing up and down the field, and I think that Millar can run all day.   Fitness will be a big determining factor in this game so the starters would be expected to give it everything they had for 60 minutes.  After the hour mark, we would send out the heavy hitters.  Options would include Davies for Millar, Buchanan for Laryea, David for Hoilett, and I would put on Oso for Piette and move him into a more attacking role.   This would be to try and secure 1 or 3 points, or if we are down 2+ goals it would most likely just give them a 30 minute run-out to work out the kinks and do a bit of damage control with player egos by ensuring that they get to play on the biggest stage.

I suspect this last consideration (pride and ego) will ultimately cause Herdman to start something pretty close to our best 11 available, but it isn’t the approach I would use.  

 

Hoilett isnt even travelling to Mexico.

David at CB is probably just an error on your graphic

Edited October 2, 2021 by Floortom

[dyslexic nam]

3 minutes ago, Floortom said:

 

Hoilett isnt even travelling to Mexico.

David at CB is probably just an error on your graphic

Yeah, I switched that as soon as it was posted.  I was moving guys around in the app and forgot to change it.  
 

As for Hoilett, I forgot about that.  Tough call.  Maybe David has to start, but man I would like to keep him limited to 30 minutes.