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Posted by
Steve Bottjer,
November 17, 2015 |
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Steve Bottjer
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@BottjerRNO
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After a vital win on Friday at home against Honduras, the Canadian Men’s National Team were back in action on Tuesday as Benito Floro’s squad continued their run of matches for the 4th round of World Cup qualifying for the CONCACAF region with an away fixture against El Salvador.
Floro elected to go with the exact same starting eleven as the one that emerged victorious against Honduras against an El Salvador side missing key players at the at Estadio Cuscatlan in San Salvador.
With his 85th cap in this match, midfielder Julian de Guzman became the all-time leader in appearances for the Canadian Men’s National Team.
The Opening 45
Canada continued the same composed and organized play that the squad showed against Honduras during the first forty-five minutes against El Salvador.
The Canadians engineered the first scoring chance of the game in the 17th minute when Junior Hoilett received a cross from Tosaint Ricketts and drove towards goal only be tackled before he could his shot off.
El Salvador had an excellent chance to open the scoring when midfielder Dustin Corea was sent in 1v1 against Milan Borjan, with the Canadian keeper coming up with a massive save to keep the game scoreless.
Canadian came within inches of taking the lead in the 42nd minute when Cyle Larin rose up high in traffic and headed the ball off the crossbar.
The Second Half
The humidity seemed to take its toll on Canada in the second half, as El Salvador dominated the possession and looked the more likely to break through during much of the second half. That said, Canada continued to defend strongly on the back of very strong play by central defenders Dejan Jakovic and Adam Straith.
El Salvador had a scoring chance in the 54th minute when Corea unleashed a powerful shot that was ultimately deftly handled by Borjan.
With Canada running out of steam, Floro brought on Samuel Piette and David Edgar to replace to Julian de Guzman and Will Johnson in the midfield. That moved solidified Canada defensively and allowed Atiba Hutchinson to push further forward, which unsettled El Salvador and saw the home side play on their back heels a bit more as the match played out.
Canada almost nicked all three points during injury time when Cyle Larin stole the ball off an El Salvador defender to engineer a chance on goal. However, the Canadian striker saw his shot his the side netting rather the back of the net, as Canada settled for a well-earned draw away from home.
With the point, Canada now have four points from two matches in the 4th round of World Cup qualifying and now sit second in their group behind Mexico. Overall, this was an impressive and professional performance from a Canadian side playing under harsh conditions in Central America.
Man of the Match
Atiba Hutchinson
The veteran midfielder was a dominant force in the midfield for the second game in a row, playing a smart two-way game in which closed down the Honduras attack while also playing a key role in orchestrating Canada’s forward movements. Keeper Milan Borjan also had a very strong game and made a point saving match as Canada earned a vital draw away in Central America.
Canada Line-up
18 Milan Borjan
20 Karl Ouimette
4 Adam Straith
12 Dejan Jakovic
17 Marcel de Jong
13 Atiba Hutchinson
8 Will Johnson
6 Julian de Guzman (C)
9 Tosaint Ricketts
10 Junior Hoilett
21 Cyle Larin
Substitutions: Samuel Piette for Will Johnson (71’); David Edgar for Julian de Guzman (71’); Tesho Akindele for Junior Hoilett (81’).
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