MATCH PREVIEW: 3 questions Bev Priestman's CanWNT will look to answer at the 2024 SheBelieves Cup
For the third time in four years, the CanWNT are getting set to play at the SheBelieves Cup this week, as they begin their final sprint toward the Olympics later this summer in Paris with a trip to the United States for the annual invitational tournament.
And there, they’ll have several questions to try and answer in Atlanta and Columbus, where the tournament will be held, as they look to win it for the first time. Having not won a friendly invitational tournament since the 2016 Algarve Cup, where they defeated Brazil in the final, they’d love to bust that slump with a commanding performance in this competition.
Especially with a tweak in the format for this year, which pushes it from being a three-game round-robin to a semi-final and final knockout bracket, in which they’ll play Brazil in the first game and either the US or Japan depending on how that goes, Canada will feel they can thrive in that environment, giving them hope of winning it all.
But if they’re to do that, they’ll have to balance winning with some valuable Olympic preparation, as they continue to get set to defend their 2021 Olympic gold medal in France later this year.
Still left with some crucial roster decisions to make before then, and yet to finalize their tactical plan, they will not want to waste valuable minutes together as a group before they name an Olympic squad and head to Paris in July.
“I have a feeling it’s going to be as late as it can be. I would imagine end of June at the latest.”#CanWNT’s Bev Priestman on when she expects to name her Olympic roster.
— Har Journalist (@HarJournalist) April 5, 2024
Therefore, this camp will all be about balance, much like at the Gold Cup, where Canada had a strong tournament while making several key learnings that they’ll look to build off of heading into these games and beyond.
Speaking of those learnings, however, here’s a look at three things they’ll look to take from this SheBelieves Cup, as they continue to push towards Paris.
Test themselves against top opposition:
It’s no secret - if Canada were to win the Olympics again, they’ll face some stiff opposition along the way.
For example, in the group stage, third-ranked France, 21st-ranked Colombia and 28th-ranked New Zealand await them, while first-ranked Spain, fourth-ranked US, fifth-ranked Germany, seventh-ranked Japan, 10th-ranked Brazil and 12th-ranked Australia are just some of the teams who they could face in the knockout stages.
Yet, it goes without saying - to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Canada knows that - their run to the gold medal at the 2021 Olympics went through 10th-ranked Japan, seventh-ranked Brazil, fifth-ranked Sweden and a top-ranked US side (using their rankings at the time), which was quite the gauntlet.
Because of that, any sort of top-level preparation that Canada will be able to get before that competition will be quite crucial, especially against top-10 teams.
For what it’s worth, Canada has had a decent number of games against top-10 opposition since the start of 2023 - they’ve played seven matchups against the likes of France, the US, Brazil and Japan over that span, as well as three matches against Australia if you were to expand the category from top 10 to top 15.
Despite that, their record in those games is mixed - if you include the Australia sample to make it 10 games, Canada has a record of 4W-1D-5L, showing that they’ve been competitive but still have work to do.
Yet, it’s important to note that they’ve been trending in the right direction - they’ve got a record of 3W-1D-1L in their last five games against top 15 teams (their penalty shootout loss to the US at the Gold Cup is listed as a draw) thanks to some tactical changes, but they need to prove now that those wins weren’t a fluke. Especially given that they were denied a chance to prove that at the Gold Cup last month against the US, as that matchup was played under less-than-ideal weather circumstances that took a lot of the shine off that game, they’ll have that in the back of their minds heading into this competition.
That’s why it’s exciting to see that they’ll start off their tournament with a matchup against Brazil in the semi-finals (even if they’re getting set to face them for the ninth time since the start of 2021), especially knowing that they’re guaranteed to face Japan or the US in the final or third-place game depending on how they do.
Two tests that will offer them a taste of how their new-look tactical profile will look against top opposition, as well as offer a key audition opportunity to players battling to make the Olympic squad, that will prove to be quite valuable in the long run for Bev Priestman in either circumstance (even if they’d prefer to then play the US to make up for the rain-soaked match). 
Iron out the tactical plan:
After crashing out of the World Cup in the group stages following a draw with Nigeria, a win over Ireland and a loss to Australia, Canada’s turned things around quite nicely since.
In fact, they’ve got a record of 9W-1D-1L in the 11 games they've played since, which included a run of seven straight wins.
A big reason for that? A tweak in formation, as they switched to a new-look 3-4-2-1 set-up in their first game post-World Cup, an Olympic qualifier against Jamaica, and haven’t looked back since.
And while the opposition has varied across the matches, ranging from Concacaf teams they were heavily favoured against in the Gold Cup group stages to friendlies against Brazil and Australia, they’ve done well to find their feet in that new-look set-up, too.
After struggling offensively at the World Cup, while also straying from the defensive identity that allowed them to win the Gold Cup, they now look a lot more organized at the back and have much clearer ideas of how they want to attack.
Defensively, they’re now better equipped to deal with their opponents' speed thanks to the switch to a back three, in which Jade Rose and Kadeisha Buchanan have thrived as outside centre backs, specifically, while also remaining solid in the air through the likes of Buchanan, Vanessa Gilles and Shelina Zadorsky.
Then, offensively, they’ve thrived with the insertion of wing backs into their system, which has been a big boost for Ashley Lawrence, in particular, who has benefitted from the width that she can now provide offensively knowing that she has the protection of the back three behind her. From there, the back three and wing backs have also offered crucial support to their midfield in the build-up play, too, which wasn’t always the case in the 4-2-3-1 they employed before, something that has also helped the forwards get more support.
Thanks to that, they’ve now looked like a team that’s equipped to compete with top teams at both ends of the pitch, something that they were certainly lacking before.
But now, they need to continue to iron out that plan, even if it feels all but ready for the Olympics.
First, they’ll need to keep testing out new partnerships within that formation, especially with the presence of some new faces that haven’t played in the set-up yet, such as Janine Beckie and Desiree Scott, who have been out injured since before the World Cup.
Then, look for them to use this tactical set-up to go toe-to-toe with some top teams in this tournament, something that they haven't had all that much opportunity to do in those 11 games, allowing them to prove that what they’ve so far shown can sustain itself against tier one opposition.
Lastly, a big goal for them will be to figure out what their backup tactical plan is. For example, in moments where they felt they needed to switch from the 3-4-2-1 at the Gold Cup, they chose to go to a 4-4-2, which they struggled in, especially when their opponents pressed them high.
Instead of that, one could wonder if a 4-3-3 with three midfielders and two wingers could’ve made more sense as a backup option, especially given the profiles of players that they have, or a similar formation, which is something they could experiment with as an alternative to the 3-4-2-1.
What they showed this camp is exactly what the #CanWNT/#CanXNT missed at the World Cup, as they looked fluid tactically in the 3-4-2-1, played more on the front foot, integrated new faces and found variety in their attack
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) September 27, 2023
Now, if they can build on this for the Olympics? Huge
Given what they’ve seen from that 3-4-2-1, they won’t have much reason to change that unless they struggle a lot, but it might not hurt to have an alternative plan just in case, giving them something they can turn to in moments of need.
Take advantage of the evaluation opportunity:
Finally, the big thing that Canada will need to do is ensure that they make the most of the 180 minutes that they’ll play this tournament, especially in terms of what they’ll be able to learn about their players.
There, they’ll have some big questions to answer as they continue the process of whittling down their Olympic squad.
Because of that, they’ll have to ensure that they try and answer some of the questions that await them in that selection process.
For example, figuring out where Beckie and Scott fit in the new system is a big one, as Beckie can play anywhere across the front line and at both wing back positions, which could bring value in different ways, whereas Scott will have to prove she can play in a box-to-box double-pivot, having usually played in more of a defensive midfield position for Canada before.
Speaking of Scott, she and Julia Grosso should both earn long looks in this camp, especially with the unfortunate news that the in-form Quinn had to withdraw from this squad with a concussion. While Quinn will be missed given their fit with Jessie Fleming, it can be a chance for Grosso, who has struggled to find a fit in this new formation as a starter, and Scott to prove that they can crack the Olympic squad, something that Simi Awujo’s resurgent form could make hard for both of them to do.
On that note, Awujo will be someone to watch this camp, as she and fellow Gold Cup standouts, such as Jade Rose, Gabrielle Carle, Cloé Lacasse and Adriana Leon will look to build off what they showed in that tournament, just against top opposition. Unfortunately, they’ll be missing a key Gold Cup standout as Olivia Smith had to withdraw with an injury, which is a shame as she’s been in great form for club and country, but that could open up the door for a Marie-Yasmine Alidou or Clarissa Larisey, who had good but limited glimpses at the Gold Cup, to get a longer look.
Priestman says Quinn left the Canadian camp with a concussion of their last game. Olivia Smith took a knock on the knee, nothing significant, just was not ready for this window.
— SHE scores bangers (@SHEscoresbanger) April 5, 2024
Otherwise, this will be an opportunity for any names who aren’t quite cemented in the Olympic roster to throw themselves into that group, which is likely only 12 or 13 names long at the moment. Especially if they can have a big game or form a nice partnership, that could go a long way towards at least giving them an edge in the race for spots, something that the Gold Cup standouts can attest to.
Either way, one thing’s for sure - with the Olympics right around the corner, it feels like every audition will matter for players battling to make this squad, especially in matches like this, showing why these games are so important right now.
