Canada faced a mammoth task in its bid for its first Olympic men’s soccer berth in nearly four decades — it needed to beat a Mexican powerhouse on their home soil, something no Canadian team has ever done.
Still, for 56 minutes, the dream looked within reach.
Then an unfortunate risky pass up the middle by goalie James Pantemis — who was outstanding throughout the tournament — led to a Mexican goal, putting Canada in a hole too deep to dig out of.
“I thought we had the tactics right, we were frustrating them, not really giving them the chances,” said Canadian coach Mauro Biello. “It’s unfortunate, we had to be perfect, you have to be perfect against a team like that.
“We lost to the best team in CONCACAF. And it was a fight.”
Uriel Antuna and Johan Vasquez scored to lift Mexico to a 2-0 victory over Canada in the do-or-die semifinals of the CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship on Sunday.
Mexico, the Olympic gold medallists in 2012, clinched their 12th Olympic berth with the victory, while the Canadians, who haven’t played on the Olympic stage since 1984, must wait another three years.
WATCH | Canada loses in semis to Mexico:
Canada fell short of a spot at the Tokyo Olympics after losing 2-0 to Mexico at the CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship. 1:23
Mexico capitalizes on long pass
Canada’s defence was excellent in keeping Mexico off the scoreboard before Mexico capitalized on Pantemis’s long pass up the middle to the foot of a Mexican player.
“For us to be in the game for that amount of time, and really managing them and frustrating them for a good period was very good,” Biello said. “And unfortunately, there was a an error that that cost us and changed a little bit the momentum.”
Antuna, a lethal striker who’s scored eight goals in 16 appearances for Mexico’s full national side, was open just inside the box and one-timed a pass past Pantemis.
“You can’t put anything on James, he’s been a rock the whole tournament,” said defender David Norman. “He kept us in the game against El Salvador, and he had four saves in the second half against Haiti that kept us in the game. So no, you can’t put anything on him.”
Mexico delivered more heartbreak in the 64th minute at Jalisco Stadium when Vasquez out-leapt Canadian defenders to get his head on a free kick.
“Disappointment, frustration,” said Norman, who normally plays midfield for Cavalry FC in the Canadian Premier League. “We had a game plan that the first half kind of went to script like we wanted it to. We had belief across the group, we really thought this was going to be the year we pushed Canada to the next level, and we had full belief that was gonna happen, so disappointed for sure.”
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Canada came into the tournament — which was postponed a year due to COVID-19 — 0-4-2 against Mexico at the under-23 level in Olympic qualifying since 1992. No Canadian men’s team has ever won a competitive match in Mexico.
The Canadians faced a steep climb in Guadalajara considering they were together for barely a week, Biello pointed out, and played four games in eight days while still in pre-season form.
“I give credit to a lot of those boys in that dressing room and they’re pretty disappointed right now,” Biello said.
Toronto FC’s recent COVID-19 outbreak threw a wrench into Biello’s team selection, as all nine player’s he’d had in his pool from the Major League Soccer team were unavailable.
Scary moments
Mexico outshot Canada 7-2 in the first half, including three on target, their first chance coming from a header off a corner kick in the 19th minute that sailed just wide of the net.
There were some scary moments midway through the first half when Pantemis appeared to hurt his right shoulder when he dove to deflect a shot from Antuna. Pantemis, a 24-year-old who plays for MLS side CF Montreal, grimaced in pain on the pitch for a couple of minutes but stayed in the game.
He was forced into action less than a minute later, diving to smother another attack from Antuna.
The half ended in a shoving match that brought Mexico’s substitutes off the bench.
Biello said he takes away numerous positives from the game, and singled out Lucas Dias, who had to isolate for nine days for health and safety protocols before the tournament, and defenders Norman and Zorhan Bassong.
The 18-year-old Dias, who plays in Lisbon for Sporting CP’s U23 squad, made his first start for Canada Sunday, and displayed his skills early on, dribbling through three Mexicans in the midfield before being fouled. Dias replaced previous team captain Derek Cornelius, who twisted a knee against Honduras and surely had a tough night watching from the bench.
Biello said Canada’s showing in Mexico bodes well for the national program.
“For sure from a performance standpoint, you want to make it to the Olympics, but the end in mind in this program is to have an alignment from the men’s national team all the way down,” Biellos said. “And for me, it was to build a foundation with the group and graduate some of these players to move on to the men’s national team. (But) yes, we’re disappointed.”
Canada had finished second in Group B behind Honduras on goal difference after the teams played to a 1-1 draw on Thursday. Mexico went undefeated to win Group A.
Canada’s senior squad, meanwhile, watched the game from Bradenton, Fla., and sent a good luck message via video. The Canadians were slated to play the Cayman Islands on Sunday, but the game was delayed a day due to issues with pre-match COVID-19 tests taken by the Cayman Islands delegation, which did not meet FIFA requirements.
Canada’s women, the two-time reigning Olympic bronze medallists, have already clinched their Tokyo berth.
Mexico will play Honduras in the tournament final. The Americans will miss their third consecutive Olympics after a 2-1 loss to Honduras in the other semifinal Sunday.
Vancouver Canucks winger Dakota Joshua is set to make his season debut Thursday after missing time for cancer treatment.
Head coach Rick Tocchet says Joshua will slot into the lineup Thursday when Vancouver (8-3-3) hosts the New York Islanders.
The 28-year-old from Dearborn, Mich., was diagnosed with testicular cancer this summer and underwent surgery in early September.
He spoke earlier this month about his recovery, saying it had been “very hard to go through” and that he was thankful for support from his friends, family, teammates and fans.
“That was a scary time but I am very thankful and just happy to be in this position still and be able to go out there and play,,” Joshua said following Thursday’s morning skate.
The cancer diagnosis followed a career season where Joshua contributed 18 goals and 14 assists across 63 regular-season games, then added four goals and four assists in the playoffs.
Now, he’s ready to focus on contributing again.
“I expect to be good, I don’t expect a grace period. I’ve been putting the work in so I expect to come out there and make an impact as soon as possible,” he said.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be perfect right from the get-go, but it’s about putting your best foot forward and working your way to a point of perfection.”
The six-foot-three, 206-pound Joshua signed a four-year, US$13-million contract extension at the end of June.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
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