USMNT vs. Canada: A desirable matchup with undesirable third-place stakes

New York Times

21-03-2025

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Stephen Eustáquio began to look down at the floor in frustration before stopping to consider what lies ahead.
It was less just a few hours after his Canada team came into their Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Mexico riding a wave of optimism and, they believed, preparation before a must-win match. That sense of optimism began to erode just 47 seconds after kickoff when Mexico scored the opening goal. It then disappeared completely with Mexico's second goal to send El Tri to the final. The long-time bosses of Concacaf showed the savviness and experience Canada still lack.
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Canada's midfield general knows this.
'It's experience,' he said of what Mexico has that Canada doesn't right now. 'It's something that we will get in the future, we just have to continue to work.'
And when Eustáquio considered when the next opportunity to work, as it were, would come? That's when his demeanor flipped.
'It's a game against the U.S., and that motivates us a lot more,' he said of Canada's opponent in the upcoming third-place game, following the U.S.'s stunning defeat in the other semifinal to Panama. 'They're our rivals. We beat them in (a September friendly). They want to beat us, and we want to beat them again.'
U.S. vs. Canada: it's the game so many at the Nations League – the Canadians especially – wanted. It's just happening under wholly undesirable circumstances. The next chapter in this burgeoning rivalry will be more about avoiding catastrophe and humiliation rather than competing for a trophy. Both Canada and the U.S. should have woken up Friday morning feeling incomplete. With the World Cup a little over a year away, this third-place game offers each a chance to save face, and the opportunity to do so against an opponent equally as determined to set things back on course.
Against Panama, the U.S. couldn't display the necessary work rate and emotion to properly influence the game, in manager Mauricio Pochettino's estimation. A lackadaisical performance made for a wholly boring affair. Coupled with a premature Copa América exit, this group of skilled American players – many plying their trade for prominent European clubs – will aim to turn its talent into a more cohesive effort against Canada.
'The difference was the way they fight for the game,' Pochettino said of Panama. 'They were hungry for every single ball. Every ball was the last one for Panama and, from the touchline, you feel that difference.'
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For the U.S., facing Canada presents a second match in which it can demonstrate the requisite enthusiasm, intensity and quality that's been lacking, arguably dating back to the 2022 World Cup.
'Just as we always do after games: We have to rest a bit, we're going to watch back the game a little bit, see what we can improve on so we can get better and just get ourselves in the best physical and mental conditions to go again in a few days,' U.S. star Christian Pulisic said.
For Canada, it can probably sleep a little easier knowing the effort was front and center against Mexico. It dominated possession, tried to act as the aggressor by winning more duels and got close to goal on occasion. But once Canada got there, it faltered mightily. The questionable finishing and lack of quality final passes were once again Canada's tactical undoing. Canada has now been shut out in half of manager Jesse Marsch's 14 games in charge. The time to continue relying solely on his trusted forward pair of Jonathan David and Cyle Larin may have run out.
But beyond rectifying poor play in the final third, the intangibles will matter to Canada against the U.S. Canada knows its core is lacking a truly decisive win against the U.S. in tournament play. It may not be in a final, and perhaps a third-place match won't carry the same clout, but this is an opponent the players have been eyeing, backed with supreme motivation.
'There's no secret there's a bit of a political issues surrounding this game more recently,' Canada's Jonathan Osorio said. 'There's no hiding that it is the back of our mind. But at the end of the day, we are going to prepare for this game the best way possible: to go out and win.'
That's been easier said than done for Canada. A group with talent that can stack up against the of the U.S., must show the kind of canny and game management that is necessary in pressure-filled, tournament situations. There was no doubting Canada's intensity against Mexico. But the Canadians still lack the experience to turn intensity into quality attacking opportunities and close games out. The latter was alarmingly true earlier this summer as Canada squandered a lead in the Copa América third-place game against Uruguay.
'Now, it's just that little bit of savviness that the best teams have and the best players have that we're going to continue to push (for),' Marsch said.
As Osorio alluded to, this match could garner more attention than the average third-place game because of the wider implications.
The strained political relations between the two longstanding allies – and World Cup cohosts – serves as a backdrop. How each team channels that aspect – or elects not to – will reveal plenty. The recent Canada-U.S. games at the 4 Nations Face-Off hockey tournament provided a window into what kind of intensity an inflamed political climate can create. There were three fights in nine seconds. Fans booing opposition national anthems. A final that went down as an immediate classic.
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The third-place setting zaps some of the organic aura surrounding the game, but there should still be plenty of motivation considering each's desire to respond to disappointment – and doing so amid the external factors.
Plus, outside of this summer's Gold Cup, which will feature less-than-full strength squads given that FIFA has allowed clubs to take priority over countries for the expanded Club World Cup, this will realistically be each team's final opportunity to play a truly competitive game before hosting World Cup games at home.
So no, there's no trophy at stake. It's not a final. But it's still a matchup that both can use to apply to the games that truly matter in 15 months.
'Every game from now on,' Canada's Jonathan David quickly and sternly answered, when asked about the third-place game, 'is preparation for the World Cup.'