WOLVERHAMPTON, United Kingdom — While Canada leaves the Arnold Clark Cup on the back of a 1-0 loss to an impressive Spain side, coach Bev Priestman saw plenty of positives for the Olympic champions.
Despite having half of her roster in pre-season mode back home with their NWSL teams and missing talismanic captain Christine Sinclair and experienced forward Adriana Leon, the sixth-ranked Canadian women tied No. 8 England 1-1 and beat No. 3 Germany 1-0 before running into a stylish Spanish side that played well above its No. 9 ranking.
“I think we’ve taken a step forward,” Priestman said after Wednesday’s match at a near-empty Molineux Stadium. “I feel like we found ways to get (star fullback) Ashley Lawrence higher (up the pitch). We’ve got more combinations and more trusted players. I think we’ve widened the depth — I’ve tested more players.
“I said coming into this we’d come away with more European experience. We’ve done that ⦠I’m so glad we attended this tournament. I think we’ve got some massive learnings. And there are some players that really had to step up.”
A victory Wednesday and Canada (1-1-1) would have won the tournament.
Spain (1-0-2) appeared headed to hoist the trophy until goals by Millie Bright and Fran Kirby in the 84th and 94th minute, respectively, gave England (1-0-2) a 3-1 victory over Germany (0-2-1) in the late game at Molineux.
That left England and Spain tied on points. But the English women got the nod by virtue of a plus-two goal difference, compared to plus-one for Spain. Canada finished third and Germany fourth.
Attendance was announced at 13,463 during the England-Germany game.
Spain came as advertised, classy and confident, aggressive on defence and comfortable on the ball in attack.
Star midfielder Alexia Putellas, winner of the Ballon d’Or, Best FIFA Women’s Player and UEFA Player of the Year, pulled the strings for Spain as it extended its unbeaten streak to 19 games (17-0-2) since a 1-0 loss to the U.S. at the SheBelieves Cup in March 2020.
While Spain had more of the ball early on, Canada seemed up to the task and created several chances of its own to start.
But Spain went ahead in the 21st minute after Patri Guijarro stole the ball off Lawrence in midfield. Five passes later it was in the back of the net with a low shot from an unmarked Putellas, who made a stealthy run into the middle of the penalty box and beat Canadian goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan.
The 28-year-old Barcelona star almost scored a second in the 63rd minute, but her header off a corner hit the woodwork.
The game grew scrappier in the second half as substitutions were made. Canada came on late but was unable to break through, with two Canadian attackers unable to get to a dangerous Lawrence cross that flashed through the Spanish penalty box in the dying seconds.
As in the two previous matches, Priestman liked parts of the performance.
“For us it’s been three games of half-a-game, to be honest with you, across this tournament,” she said. “I can only walk away from this game very happy with the second half and a poor first half. But that’s credit to Spain.”
Spain finished with 60 per cent possession and outshot Canada 14-7 although the Canadians had a 3-1 edge in shots on target.
The defeat was only the fourth for Canada under Priestman, whose record is 10-4-6 including two shootout wins at the Tokyo Olympics. The other losses were to the U.S., Brazil and Mexico.
The Spanish women arrived in England on a 16-game winning streak during which they outscored their opposition 96-0. And despite playing to two ties, Spain looked dangerous against Germany and England, posing problems with its smothering press.
The Spanish starting 11 featured six players from Champions League winner Barcelona, including Putellas. The attacking midfielder scored 26 goals and added 19 assists as Barcelona won the Spanish League, Cup and Champions League last season. Barca teammate Jenni Hermoso, who tied for the Spanish league scoring lead with 31 goals, served as captain.
“It was a very competitive game. We battled hard,” Spain coach Jorge Vilda said through an interpreter. “We played well for certain periods of the game albeit without making the best start and that’s something that we’d like to improve on. We did then take control of the game, created chances.
“Alexia Putellas scored the goal and I feel we dominated from that point onwards.”
Priestman made four changes to the team that beat Germany, giving Marie-Yasmine Alidou her senior debut while also inserting Shelina Zadorsky, Deanne Rose and Jordyn Huitema.
Alidou, a 26-year-old midfielder from Saint-Hubert, Que., plays in Austria for SK Sturm Graz.
Eight of Canada’s 11 starters Wednesday were European-based and in-season.
Centre back Kadeisha Buchanan, earning her 116th cap, captained Canada in the absence of Sinclair, who stayed at home following the recent death of her mother. Jessie Fleming served as skipper against England while fellow midfielder Desiree Scott wore the captain’s armband against Germany.
Sheridan started in goal for the third straight game at the tournament, giving way to Sabrina D’Angelo at halftime. Buchanan, Fleming, Lawrence, Scott, Janine Beckie and Jayde Riviere also started all three contests.
Canada came close in the 28th minute when Huitema headed a Beckie free kick off the crossbar. The ball bounced back into play, just missing an onrushing Buchanan. Spain goalkeeper Lola Gallardo appeared to get a finger to the ball, sending it off the woodwork.
Putellas showed her pedigree on numerous occasions, including late in the half when she nutmegged Scott, who was making her 173rd senior appearance, before heading to the Canadian goal.
Riviere had to be helped off in the 53rd minute in obvious pain after having her wrist stepped on by a Spanish player after falling. There was no immediate update on her condition.
Canada was unable to threaten until later in the second half, with the final passing often missing its mark although forward Cloe Lacasse made her presence felt after coming on in the 77th minute.
The Canadian women had only played Spain twice before, drawing 0-0 in May 2019 in Logrones and losing 1-0 in March 2017 in Sao Joao da Venda.
The Canadian women are gearing up for the CONCACAF W Championship in July in Mexico, which will determine World Cup and Olympic qualification. Next up for Canada is a planned friendly in April.
The England tournament’s title sponsor, Arnold Clark, is a family-run car dealer.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
