Canadian men look to showcase world-class speed, athleticism against Mexico

Canada defender Alphonso Davies controls the ball during an international friendly soccer match against Mexico in Arlington, Texas, on September 10, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Tony Gutierrez

Toronto FC coach Robin Fraser admits he was “blown away” when he watched Canada beat the U.S. 2-1 in Kansas City in a September friendly.

“I have to think Canada’s back four is among the most athletic in the world,” Fraser marvelled. “And when you have athleticism like that, you have confidence to be aggressive.

“And it seems to have made its way through the team. They also have athletic wide guys. And so when they go to close, they close incredibly well. And I did come away from that game thinking ‘Wow, this is really impressive.’ … What Canada did in that game still resonates in my head.”

That victory snapped a 23-game winless streak against the U.S. south of the border that dated back to 1957.

“On the day, Canada was clearly, clearly the better team. It wasn’t even a question,” Fraser added.

The 31st-ranked Canadians look to take a step closer to their first trophy since the 2000 Gold Cup when they face No. 19 Mexico on Thursday in the CONCACAF Nations League semifinal at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. The winner will face either the 16th-ranked U.S. or No. 36 Panama in Sunday’s final, with US$2 million and an eight-kilogram trophy — adorned with 41 diamonds, one for each CONCACAF nation — on the line.

A Canada-U. S. final would be a game with a ripple effect that stretches far beyond the football pitch, given the sandpaper-like political relationship that currently exists between the two countries. Not to mention that the Americans won all three previous editions of the tournament (with Canada finishing fifth, second and fifth).

But while Canada coach Jesse Marsch has his eye on the bigger picture, he is not looking beyond Mexico.

He knows Canada brings world-class speed and athleticism to the table.

“I’m not 100 per cent certain but I think I’ve coached six players in my coaching career that are faster than 37 km/h,” Marsch said in an interview. “This team currently has six and (newcomer Daniel) Jebbison makes seven. So now this group will have more top-speed players than I’ve ever coached in my career, combined.”

The pace comes from captain Alphonso Davies, Jacob Shaffelburg, Moise Bombito, Tani Oluwaseyi, Cyle Larin, Alistair Johnston and now Jebbison, who plays for England’s Bournemouth.

Add forward Promise David, another newcomer who plays for Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise, and Marsch reckons he has 15 players capable of speeds in excess of 36 km/h.

Marsch’s goal is to “develop the intelligence and sophistication” of what the team does with that speed and power. And that extends from closing down the opposition to transition moments on both offence and defence.

“The key for me is that when we develop moments, that these moments are full-on, 100 per cent using our speed and power and athleticism collectively to overwhelm opponents,” he said.

The speed starts from the back in the former of Davies, Bombito, Johnston and Derek Cornelius.

“It’s a coach’s dream to have a back group with that kind of speed because it allows you to do so many more things,” said Fraser, former U.S. international and two-time MLS Defender of the Year.

“They can really smother teams because of how athletic they are,” he added.

Marsch believes his team speed rivals top club and international sides in the world.

“You would have to say that at least we’re close to being on par, if not among one of the best,” he said. “And so you would look at teams like France, that would probably be the team that comes to mind as the most powerful, maybe Holland.”

Elite teams like those are able to move in unison, at pace and with purpose.

“We are now talking about elite-level athletes and the key is to continue to develop them into really high-level footballers.” Marsch said of his charges. “The goal is to overwhelm opponents and when we’ve been good, we’ve looked like that. And we just need to continue to expand the ability to do that for longer periods of time against even better opponents.”

Mexico opted for a physical approach in a scoreless draw with Canada in another September friendly and Marsch expects more of the same Thursday,

“Absolutely. And I think it’s a show of respect. I think they see that we’re a fast, powerful dynamic team and they know that if they let us get into an open game and start to use our pace, that this will be a challenge for them.”

The Canadian challenge will be to remain organized and compact while pushing the pace of the game, so as not to allow Mexico’s quality players the time and space on the ball to cause damage.

“I think this sets up to be a physical match but also a bit of a chess match. For that reason it will be a difficult and interesting and fun game,” said Marsch. “We’re excited.

“Look in the end, I’m super-excited for our team to have big challenges with big expectations. This is exactly what we need and where we are in our personal development. We need some games like this so that we can find out more about ourselves and show that we’re ready to rise to the occasion.”

Article written by Neil Davidson.