Canada flops vs. Guatemala in PKs, out of Gold Cup in quarterfinals
Canada is out of the Gold Cup after a disappointing and inexcusable quarterfinal loss on penalties (6-5 following a 1-1 draw) at the hands of 106th-ranked Guatemala Sunday in Minnesota.
After going up 1-0 in the first half thanks to Jonathan David's penalty kick, Canada went down to 10 men due to Jacob Shaffelburg's unnecessary foul in first-half stoppage time. From there, Canada made multiple individual errors, many of which were then compounded by questionable substitutions in the second half.
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After Guatemala went level in the 69th minute through Rubio Rubin – a former U.S. international who switched allegiances to Guatemala in 2022 – Canada failed to put its best foot forward on penalties, with Luc De Fougerolles' miss in sudden death opening the door for José Morales's clincher. Canada is left to ask multiple questions of itself ahead of next summer's World Cup. After entering this competition with grand ambition and a desire to lift the trophy for the first time in 25 years, right now it doesn't even look ready simply to contend in World Cup games at home.
For Guatemala, meanwhile, it's the nation's first time in a Gold Cup semifinal since 1996, and its first time since the field expanded beyond nine teams.
Here's a closer look at Canada's premature exit and Guatemala's historic achievement.
Sure, there were asterisks you can try to put on Canada's tournament performance and quarterfinal exit. It was without Moïse Bombito, Alphonso Davies and Stephen Eustáquio. Going down to 10 men for an entire second half Sunday made things more difficult.
But those asterisks should be stricken from the record. Canada talked a big game in the buildup to the Gold Cup and was one of the favorites. Losing in this round, and losing to Guatemala given the discrepancy in talent, represents a total failure. Canada has to win this game, no excuses. It has to be able to get by a team like Guatemala in a competitive atmosphere to believe it has a chance they can win its first World Cup game.
Instead, self-doubt could linger within the team after an embarrassing exit, because Canada has no one but itself to blame after the loss.
Marsch did not make the right substitutions after going down to 10 men at halftime. When he did, he relied on players who were in the midst of poor tournaments – Cyle Larin and Daniel Jebbison come to mind. Canada's midfield duo of Mathieu Choinere and Niko Sigur let Marsch down with discombobulated play. Canada needed to go up 2-0 to put the game to bed, and the lack of build-up play through the middle prevented that from happening.
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Furthermore, Shaffelburg's completely unnecessary foul that led to his second yellow card was more evidence that a full-throttle Canada needs more preparation against strong teams to prove it's ready to handle every situation. The challenges next summer will be even more difficult, and after the Gold Cup, this team still does not look ready.
Back in the quarterfinals of Copa América, Canada earned their most decisive win on penalties against Venezuela.
One year later, Canada's coaching staff and players made far too many errors in their loss on penalties in the Gold Cup quarterfinals.
Dayne St. Clair made a few crucial stops for Canada during the first 90 minutes, yes. But after guessing right on two of Guatemala's first shots during penalties, he saw those shots go right through his hands. For a team that wants to go into the knockout round in the World Cup, the sharpness just wasn't there.
On the other side, sending the 19-year-old De Fougerolles to take a penalty in sudden death – after he missed a penalty earlier this month against Ivory Coast – feels like a mistake from Marsch. De Fougerolles smashed his penalty off the bar and nearly burst into tears immediately afterwards. The emerging center back played well during the game, but did Marsch need to put that kind of pressure on a player still finding his way for the national team? There's no doubt he's going to play a massive role on the team moving forward, yet opting for experience instead of redemption might have been a more effective approach.
Prior to that miss, Cyle Larin simply didn't hit his penalty hard enough, allowing Guatemala's Kenderson Navarro to make an easy save at a pivotal point (he was bailed out by Guatemala missing the subsequent chance). Larin has taken enough in his career to understand what's required of him, yet this tournament has exposed Larin for how far down Canada's forward depth chart he actually has fallen. Failing to convert, especially with Jonathan David out for the shootout, certainly did not help his cause.
On a night when individual errors sunk Canada, Larin, Marsch and others will be left to wonder how a few different choices might have changed Canada's tournament.
Marsch pushed back in an earlier press conference during the Gold Cup when asked what his 'Plan B' would be if Canada's pressing, high-tempo game failed against testy teams. Marsch said labelling his Canada team as one thing only – namely, a pressing side – was 'insulting.'
And while this isn't about that English media member being proven right, it certainly felt like Canada's relentless style caught up with them in some way against Guatemala.
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Two of Canada's best players, Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan, pulled up with what appeared to be muscle injuries, and both continued playing before eventually being subbed out.
Furthermore, Marsch did not make any substitutions at halftime after going down a man due to Shaffelburg's red card in first-half stoppage time. Could effective substitutions and perhaps a more conservative approach have helped Canada settle the game down, considering it was up a goal? 'Conservative' and 'Jesse Marsch' aren't words often used together in the same sentence, though.
On a day when Canada's midfield pair of Sigur and Choinere were poor and struggled to create strong build-up play, Canada had to rely on the singular efforts of players like Buchanan and David – and naturally didn't look the same without the two attacking threats. (Never mind the fact that both players are seeking to sort their club situations this summer, and their getting injured is not going to help.)
Is there anything that can be learned for Marsch from seeing these two players pull up after running themselves into the ground? Or is this just a case of (extremely) bad luck on the day?
Canada's staff has to take long, hard looks at the data from how players performed after heavily exerting themselves. This, again, isn't to suggest Marsch pulls a 180 on his approach. But Canada seemed to run out of steam and sputtered in a tournament when having an alternate plan of attack would have been beneficial.
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