3 takeaways from the CanWNT's She Believes Cup opener vs the US
Just to be out on the pitch was a good thing. But then, everything caught up to them at the wrong time.
Following a draining week for the Canadian Women’s National Team, who remains locked in a crucial duel off the field with Canada Soccer, they had a chance to leave that all behind them for 90 minutes when they took on the #1-ranked US in Orlando to kick off the She Believes Cup.
The #CanWNT/#CanXNT is warming up with their Canada Soccer gear inside out to protest against the CSA, along with a purple wristband to represent gender equality, and another wristband that says ‘Defend Trans Joy’ on it
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) February 16, 2023
Message is loud and clear on all fronts https://t.co/UZfGRqWjXm
A chance to do battle with a US team that they always seem to have a little extra in the tank for, it was a good opportunity for Canada to kick off their World Cup preparations with a stiff test, as they faced off against a US team looking to three-peat at the World Cup this summer.
Yet, while Canada’s attention was squarely focused on the match by the time kick-off came around, the mental fatigue of the last week then caught up to them early, as they came out of the gates uncharacteristically slow, left to chase a 2-0 deficit inside 35 minutes.
Compared to the last three times these two teams met, which were all 1-0 results where the winning team scored in the second half, it was a stark difference in play from Canada, as they just couldn’t match the intensity that the US brought early on, something we don’t usually see from them.
To their credit, they then finished the game strong, putting up a good account of themselves throughout the rest of the match, but in the end, that wasn’t enough, as the 2-0 result would end up standing by the end of the night.
Now, however, Canada won’t have much time to dwell on this one, as they get right back at it against Brazil in Nashville on Sunday, a game where they’ll look to return to their usual form, as the Olympic champions continue to juggle their battle off the pitch with World Cup preparations on it.
Here’s what we learned from this one:
US’s high press causes problems, again:
Further compounding Canada’s misery on the night? The US’s relentless high press, as they wasted no time in making Canada uncomfortable on the ball, pushing high up the field to try and catch them in possession as often as possible.
Which, to their credit, worked like a charm for them, especially inside those first 35 minutes. There, they did well to pin back Canada on the ball, forcing them to either play through that pressure or to go long, creating a bunch of turnovers on both fronts.
That’s reflected statistically, as the US had 102 recoveries to Canada’s 83 on the night, including a whopping 42 in the middle of the field, showing how often they were able to catch Canada in their trap.
From there, they then also used that press to create their second goal, which came directly off of a sloppy back pass from Vanessa Gilles, who got swarmed by a couple of US players in possession, something that they made no mistake in punishing Canada for.
GOAL 🇺🇸🇺🇸#USWNT go up 2-0 over the #CanWNT at the 2023 #SheBelievesCup, as Mallory Swanson adds a second off a bad giveaway at the back by Vanessa Gilles 😳
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) February 17, 2023
🔴 https://t.co/7JFAUhgjL6 pic.twitter.com/KrpdKmJsOb
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this from the US against Canada, either. As seen the last time these two met, which came at last summer’s CONCACAF Championship final, the US also had similar success on the day with their high press, one that Canada struggled to play through.
As a result, much like in that game, it meant a tough night for Canadian midfielders and attackers, who didn’t see the ball as much as they would’ve liked, and when they did, they were left with little time or space to do much with it.
For a Canadian team that went rather attack-heavy in their 4-2-3-1 in this game, that’s less than ideal, as it nullified some of their best offensive players, something that you don’t want to see when you play an opponent of this magnitude.
Yet, that shows Canada’s recent struggles with the high press, and teams are starting to catch on to it. Brazil, for example, really caught Canada by surprise with a high press of their own when the two teams met for a pair of friendlies in November, and you have to imagine more teams are going to start to follow suit based on what they saw in this game.
Therefore, for Canada, it’s imperative that they find a way to tweak how they play out of the back going forward. Either, they sacrifice the offence of Julia Grosso and Jessie Fleming by having them come even deeper on the field to receive the ball, or you put on an extra ball-playing centre back or midfielder, such as Shelina Zadorksy, Jade Rose or Quinn, to help create more triangles in possession.
And given that the former hasn’t seemed to work in recent games, it would make a lot of sense to at least try the latter.
Because if not, as the US showed, if Canada stays in their current 4-2-3-1 set-up when building up, all it takes is sticking in an aggressive 4-4-2 to nullify it, one where the front six matches up player-to-player with Canada’s back six.
Considering that’s something that can be countered with the triangles that building up in a 3-4-3 or a 4-3-3 (with a holding midfielder like Quinn) can offer, it makes too much sense to not at least try, which is why it would make sense to see such a set-up by the end of this tournament.
Quinn shows value to midfield, once again:
Returning to the midfield, however, it was another interesting game for the Julia Grosso and Jessie Fleming double-pivot, who despite showing flashes, weren’t able to influence the game as much as they would’ve liked.
Fleming did have more success as the game went along, as she was given more license to roam forward, but that came at the cost of Grosso, who had to play more of a defensive role in this game, one that saw her sit deeper on the pitch than usual.
There, Canada has a lot to ponder. As seen in the past, the pair can play together, as they excellently showed in friendlies against Australia last fall, but recent camps have also shown limitations of them playing in a pivot.
Especially in these sorts of games, where they have to do a lot of defending off the ball, a consequence of playing teams who flood the middle of the park with three or more players, those limitations become clear.
Namely, there’s just the reality that both players are at their best when they’re on the ball in the final third. They show it at the club level, as Fleming has been one of the most prolific midfielders in England over the past 18 months, while Grosso leads the Italian league in assists, so it’s not as if it’s much of a secret that the two are at their best when they’re higher up the pitch.
But now, head coach Bev Priestman must find a way to get them to replicate that while playing together, especially in these high-level games, where Canada needs that sort of ball progression in midfield to get their attackers involved.
Does the #CanWNT midfield pair of Julia Grosso and Jessie Fleming have the defensive acumen to survive teams like #USWNT?
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) February 17, 2023
And what of Janine Beckie at FB (or Ashley Lawrence at CM?)
We talk tactics 👇
ANALYSIS 🗣️https://t.co/IpG55Xa1Xz
HIGHLIGHTS 🎥https://t.co/kYI95GLNjK pic.twitter.com/tRX1Ufo5ia
The good news? The solution is easy - inserting Quinn underneath them as a holding midfielder.
As mentioned earlier, not only would that help Canada play through the press, but it would also free up Grosso to play the box-to-box #8 role that she plays for Juventus, while doing the same for Fleming alongside her.
Plus, having Quinn would give Canada the defensive solidity that they lacked at times in this game in midfield, which combined with their passing, would allow Canada to go toe-to-toe against teams in the middle of the park.
It’s a tough decision to make, because it means leaving one of the front four on the bench, not easy meaning that it likely means leaving one of Christine Sinclair, Adriana Leon or Jordyn Huitema out of the starting XI, but at the same time, it doesn’t matter who you have in attack if you can’t get them the ball.
And as Quinn showed in their 39 minute cameo in this game, when they’re on the field, they can help push the ball up the pitch, which is why it might be time to give them, Grosso and Fleming a go in games to come.
Wide-open battle for spots in attack:
It is not an enviable position for someone to be in. A wealth of names, and only so many of them can see the pitch at the same time.
That’s the reality that Priestman is dealing with in the attack right now for Canada, as she continues to have to play the balancing act of figuring out how to get as many of her attackers on the pitch as possible.
In this game, it meant starting with a front three of Adriana Leon, Janine Beckie and Jordyn Huitema, which then morphed into a front three of Évelyne Viens, Jenna Hellstrom and Cloé Lacasse as the game went along.
Oh, and did we mention that recent BK Häcken signing Clarissa Larisey didn’t see the pitch at all in this game? And that Canada is currently missing usual starters Deanne Rose and Nichelle Prince through injury?
Yet, that just shows what Priestman has in terms of attacking depth up front, showing how impossible of a task it’ll be for her to whittle that list of nine (assuming Rose and Prince are back and healthy) down to five or six for the World Cup. 
Especially after a game where Lacasse, Hellstrom and Viens gave Canada a good boost off the bench, something that Larisey has also done in past cameos, too, it doesn’t make life easier for Priestman.
Because of that, it’ll be interesting to see how Priestman handles this battle going forward. Might we see starts for Lacasse, Larisey, Hellstrom and Viens in the next two games, really throwing the competition wide-open? Or might we see Leon and Huitema continue to build chemistry together?
Either way, there’s no bad choice for Priestman, but that doesn’t make things easier, showing the task that she has ahead of her as she continues to ponder World Cup roster decisions.
