Canada's Tani Oluwaseyi, centre left, gets a header despite pressure from Tunisia's Omar Rekik, centre right, during first half of their friendly in Toronto, on Tuesday.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
Following months of supposition, prognostication and contingency plans, the Canadian men’s national team on Tuesday finally learned the identity of its opponent for its opening World Cup match on June 12.
Instead of what many presumed would be four-time world champion Italy, Jesse Marsch’s team will instead face off against a much less ballyhooed opponent, with Bosnia and Herzegovina making its second appearance in the finals thanks to a 4-1 penalty shootout win over the Italians.
What’s still to be determined though are the identities of the 26-man squad that Marsch will summon for that opening game. Tuesday evening’s goalless draw against fellow World Cup participant Tunisia will have certainly given the head coach food for thought.
“Look, I’ve got some tough decisions to make,” he said after the final whistle. “I know that, and with a heavy heart, I’m going to make some some people disappointed to not be in the World Cup. But the competition in the squad is as strong as it’s ever been here in Canada.”
Following Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Iceland, which also featured a red card for winger Tajon Buchanan that ruled him out of Tuesday’s game, Marsch made a number of changes to his starting lineup. Defender Ralph Priso and winger Marcelo Flores both made their first starts for Canada, both having made cameo debuts on Saturday.
Canadian men’s soccer team battles back from two-goal deficit for 2-2 draw with Iceland
Tani Oluwaseyi was handed the chance to show what he could do up front alongside captain Jonathan David, while Ismael Kone returned from suspension to partner Nathan Saliba in the midfield, Liam Millar took Buchanan’s spot on the right, and Max Crepeau was given his turn in goal.
After an almost 90-minute lightning delay, the game kicked off in front of a crowd of 22,624, slightly smaller than Saturday’s 26,328. While Priso’s evening lasted just 26 minutes – with the Vancouver Whitecaps centre back joining Canada’s growing injury list with what looked like a hamstring strain – Flores wasted little time thrusting his name firmly into contention for the starting lineup this summer.
Midfielder Marcelo Flores (26) in action against Tunisia.GEOFF ROBINS/AFP/Getty Images
The Tigres winger, who had three caps for Mexico before switching international allegiance, provided a livewire performance throughout, constantly threatening down the left wing and making an uncomfortable evening for Tunisia right back Moutaz Neffati.
In addition to drawing corner-kick duties on his full debut, the 5 foot 7 used his speed and low centre of gravity to scamper into the penalty box, particularly in the second half as he kept a tiring Tunisian back line on high alert.
His head coach was impressed.
“I think in the two games in this window, Marcelo was one of the bright spots, for sure,” Marsch said. “So we’re really excited about the possibility of what he can mean to the team, and even more so, to have another weapon that’s a little bit different than maybe we can use in a different way for different types of moments and different types of opponents.”
Canada also benefited from a more stable midfield platform than it got against Iceland on Saturday. The return of Kone, in place of Mathieu Choiniere, alongside Saliba gave the home side added control in the middle of the park, with the Sassuolo midfielder making his first appearance for Canada since November, when he scored and was sent off in a win over Venezuela.
Marsch felt the 23-year-old really got into the game as it went on, particularly once his two midfielders had sorted out their spacing after the first half.
“The second half was one of Ismail’s best performances in terms of getting on the ball, seeing some things, playing things forward, helping setting up some attacking moments,” Marsch said, “but then also being really responsible and making sure the opponent isn’t getting out and winning some duels, winning some foot races.”
Much like Saturday, the performance wasn’t without heart-in-the-mouth moments. None more so than with 10 minutes remaining in the first half, when centre back Joel Waterman rashly overcommitted in the opposition half, allowing Tunisia to break out on a 2-on-0, with Sayfallah Ltaief sliding a pass to Elias Saad with the empty net beckoning.
The Tunisian striker waited a fraction too long to shoot though, allowing Millar the opportunity to recover and make a sliding block to preserve the clean sheet.
With 15 minutes to go, Marsch made wholesale changes, bringing on the final four of his permitted eight substitutions, which included withdrawing Flores for Ali Ahmed, with the pair set to battle it out between now and June for Canada’s starting left-wing spot.
Ahmed, who has hit the ground running in his first few months with Norwich City in the English Championship, almost broke the deadlock, working a give-and-go with fellow substitute Jonathan Osorio, but his shot was right at Chamakh.
The end result means that Canada has gone winless in four straight games on Canadian soil, and the next time Canada plays at this stadium, on June 12, will be to open its World Cup. There are still many questions for Marsch to answer before then.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Jonathan David's last name