PREVIEW – The USA v Canada will be the first of two games for the Canadian men’s soccer team since their 2024 Copa América campaign. With the U.S. having a disappointing Copa América performance and Canada feeling more confident, both teams will have a chance to prove themselves on Saturday.
USA v Canada: Two Rivals Meet Again at the Children’s Mercy Park
USA (1-1-3)
The USMNT have struggled in the Copa América tournament, with their only win in their last five games being a 2-0 Bolivia at home. To be fair, the 18th red card committed by Timothy Weah played a big role in the U.S. losing to Panama. Still, for a country that hosted the 2024 Copa América tournament, to not get out of the group stage will be seen as a massive failure. As a result, the USMNT has let go of Gregg Berhalter and is going to hire Mauricio Pochettino as their new head coach. This is what Chuck Booth of CBS Sports said about the team after not making it to the quarterfinals stage of the 2024 Copa América tournament:
Even still, the U.S. has won all three Concacaf Nations League titles and see themselves as the “Kings of Concacaf.” There is also a lot of excitement with the upcoming USMNT head coach, Mauricio Pochettino. For example, this is what the U.S. defender, Sergiño Dest, said about Pochettino (Source: ESPN):
“Yeah, it is [exciting],” he told ESPN while attending this weekend’s Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix. “Obviously, he’s been a coach for big cubs and he’s a well-known coach. That will be a nice experience to train under him.”
However, Pochettino will not be the head coach for the game against the CANMNT. Instead, one will see the interim head coach, Mikey Varas, behind the bench for the Americans.
Canada (1-3-1)
Note: Losses or wins in penalty-shootouts will be counted as ties as it relates to Canada
The CANMNT head coach, Jessie Marsch, seems to be bonding with the Canadian national men’s team, as he said this (Source: Charles Boehm of MLS Soccer):
“I would think that me being the Canadian coach will bring energy to the game, it will bring energy to the players,” acknowledged the former New York Red Bulls and CF Montréal boss in a 1-on-1 conversation with MLSsoccer.com as he and his squad prepare to visit Children’s Mercy Park.
Alphonso Davies also seems excited to play again for the national team after a successful 2024 Copa América tournament campaign (Source: OneSoccer):
The Canadians, despite their success at Copa América, only have one win in regulation time in the Copa América tournament. That was a 1-0 result against Peru, which was scored by Jonathan David. Still, there is a lot of optimism around the team, especially with the number of players that now play in Ligue 1.
Players to Watch and Head-to-Head Matchups
The USMNT’s biggest challenge will be the centre-back Derek Cornelius and right-back, Alistair Johnston. Both players had a fantastic Copa América tournament as they both had great defensive positioning and posture. They both played a big role in Canada doing so well in the 2024 Copa América competition.
READ MORE: A Fantastic CANMNT Team Effort in Thrilling Win Over Venezuela
There are also obviously other players from Canada to note with examples such as Davies, David, and Jacob Shaffelburg. Shaffelburg is a player to watch as he broke out and made a name for himself in the 2024 Copa América competition, including scoring a key goal against Venezuela.
As for the Americans, notable players like Christian Pulisic and Dest will always be a threat for the Canadian men’s national team. This is especially true for Pulisic, who probably was one of the few positives for the American team in the 2024 Copa América competition.
The overall record of the USA v Canada games has been 20-11-11 in favour of the Americans. The last time both teams met was in the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup, where the Americans eliminated the Canadians in a penalty shoot-out. Also, a month earlier in the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League final, the Americans prevailed victorious with a 2-0 win over the Canadians. The last time the Canadians won on American soil was on July 6, 1957, when the Canadians won by a scoreline of 3-2. However, a Canadian draw against the U.S. on U.S. soil was much more recent, with the last one being on September 5, 2021.
How To Watch the Game
READ MORE: The CANMNT September Roster Revealed – Analysis
The game between both these sides will take place at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas. The game will take place on Saturday, September. 7, 2024, which will take place at 4:00pm ET at the Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas. That game will be shown live in the U.S. on TBS/Tele/Max, and Canadians can view the game live on OneSoccer.
Photo Credit: Canada Soccer EN X Account and the Canada Soccer FR X Account on July 13, 2024.
