retired_thoiyaba

BUSY TIME IN TEAM CANADA CAMP - FRIENDLY MATCH/GOLD CUP ROUNDUP- ONE FINAL RUN

Personal Thoughts - Feb 14/2015

The last several months have been a time of positive transition for us. Shortly after our World Cup run ended, in September of 2014, we finally were able to select a manager for our Under-20 Program. 38 year old David Franks was an unemployed coach, who jumped at the opportunity. Judging by what I saw of him with our young guys as they prepared for a couple of recent friendly matches, he'll be a great choice, and it's nice to finally have some stability in our youth program. Ante Razov was doing well, and I thought he was great with our kids, but I'd rather have the chance to groom him to take over for me when I leave, so it's a positive thing that he's now solely working as my assistant manager with the senior squad. I realize it's up to my bosses to decide who replaces me, but I'd like to think that they'd make a choice to carry forth the stability that I feel as though I've brought to the squad during my tenure, and it's only logical that hiring someone who knows my system and my way of doing things would be the ideal candidate in that regard.

We played a couple of friendly matches to close out the year, going 1-1 in those matches. I have to admit, never having played Finland before, I had no idea what to expect. I had a feeling they'd be a bit of a challenge, but I didn't realize just how good they were. I spent the vast majority of the match marvelling at how wonderfully they play defense. We lost 4-1, with Marc Bucic scoring our only goal in the 40th minute. Otherwise they shut us down completely. Most impressive. We played poorly, but it was mostly their back end forcing us into making errors instead of the usual mental errors that we tend to make on our own. They were so much quicker than alot of the defenses we've seen, and their ball control was truly impressive.

The second match was against San Marino, and it was a far more positive result. We posted a clean sheet, 3-0. Marc Bucic again contributed two goals, in the 38th and 77th minutes, while Andrea Lombardo scored in the 25th, which ultimately proved the game winner.

We then had some time off, with our first game of the North American Gold Cup scheduled for January 24th of this year. We were grouped with Costa Rica and The British Virgin Islands, clearly two of the weaker teams in the world. Before the first match of the Gold Cup group stage, as we sat in the dressing room, I told the guys that I was leaving at the end of the 2018 World Cup, and that I had hoped we'd turn that into a rallying point to bring us together as a unit. We decided that the theme for the next three and a half years would be "One Final Run". It seemed to have worked, at least in the early stages of The Gold Cup. We came out flying in the first match, with an absolutely dominant 6-0 win against the British Virgin Islands. Andrea Lombardo (who, really was the story of the entire tournament from our perspective) had a hat trick, with goals in the 12th (on a penalty kick), 22nd, and 50th minutes. Jonathan DeGuzman opened the scoring for us with a huge strike from inside the area in the 10th minute, and added another in the 24th, while Marc Bucic closed out the scoring in the 81st minute.

The second match versus Costa Rica, was much the same, except that they managed to control Lombardo, which opened the pitch up for others to score. Marc Bucic began the scoring for us in the 6th minute, Jonathan DeGuzman added two more, in the 11th and 75th minutes while Paul Corrazzin added one in the 60th. Jorge Cordero had both of Costa Rica's goals, in the 53rd and 64th minutes.

I was expecting our quarterfinal match to be a lot more competitive, but, fortunately for us, I was mistaken. We beat Guatemala 5-0, with Andrea Lombardo posting his SECOND hat trick in the span of three games. He opened the scoring in the 33rd minute, Jonathan DeGuzman tallied our second goal of the game in the 35th, Lombardo scored his second game in the 45th, midfielder Steve Gazzola scored one in the first minute of the second half, and Lombardo added his third goal on a penalty kick in the 63rd.

The real test came in the semi final match, and unfortunately, Brazil was able to get the better of us on this occasion. I will say one thing for our side, and that is that I've never seen us play better against Brazil than we did in this match. We actually held the lead for a portion of the first half. Marc Bucic got the scoring going in the 14th minute, for our first ever lead on Brazil in any competition, 1-0.

Unfortunately, the thing that I've noticed about us in my time with this squad is that, regardless of the competition, whether it's a simple friendly or a World Cup, whenever we get a lead on superior competition, we have a tendency to shove our heads up our backsides and start making mental errors. If I knew how to fix that, I would. I have to give a certain amount of credit to Asmir Begovic, our goalkeeper. He stood on his head in this game, weathering several blistering flurries of shots, even saving a penalty in the 13th minute to allow us the chance to go up 1-0 on them, just a minute later. Unfortunately, he let in three Brazillian goals, from Diego (31st minute), Robinho (68th) and Diego Tardelli (90th). Unfortunately, there was to be no trip to the finals for us this year.

We played in the third place playoff a week ago, versus a vastly superior squad from Mexico. They didn't hesitate to display that superiority, posting a dominating 4-1 win. Our only goal came in the 70th minute, off the foot of Andrea Lombardo. Apart from that, the Mexicans didn't really allow us to sniff the goal, and constantly bombarding us with shots. They got goals from Marc Antonio Lopez (9th minute), Edgar Andrade (22nd, 43rd minutes), and Efrain Juarez rounded out their scoring in the 79th with a penalty kick.

We finished fourth, the same result we achieved in my first year, and that's better than we did in the last Gold Cup we were in (when we finished 5th). And, no 16-1 losses this time..haha. All in all, I'd say that we're improving, and that's impressive and encouraging.

The story of the Gold Cup in screenshots:

Gold Cup Group B Final Standings

6-0 Vs British Virgin Islands

4-2 Versus Costa Rica

5-0 Versus Guatemala

3-1 Loss Versus Brazil

4-1 Loss Versus Mexico

retired_thoiyaba

Eckstein Handing Reins to Razov - Sort Of....

March 10, 2015
Edmonton, Alberta (CP) - Ian Eckstein, manager of Canada's men's soccer program, plans to hand over some control of the operation of the organization to his assistant, Ante Razov in the coming months.

"I've given Ante a certain level of additional responsibility that he hasn't had before" Eckstein said today. Chief among those additional responsibilities, Eckstein said, is that Razov will assume the responsibility of head coach for Canada's schedule of friendly matches throughout 2015. "Ante will have the opportunity to coach the team on matchday for our friendlies. Additionally, I will also be stepping aside to watch how he motivates the team before and during those matches. I will be on the sidelines however, as HIS assistant manager, so you'll be seeing a temporary role reversal, for a little while".

Razov has also been assigned the task of scheduling Canada's friendly matches, and he has already struck a deal on behalf of Team Canada to host minnows Sint Maartin on November 14. Canada additionally has previously scheduled friendly matches versus Brazil (Sept 5), England (Sept 9), Portugal (Oct 10), and The United States (Nov 18th).

When asked why he is taking this step now, Eckstein responded "I feel like this is an opportunity Ante deserves. I saw how he worked with our young guys while he was head coach within our youth system, and he impressed me enough that I feel comfortable doing this now". "It helps that these are non-competitive matches, so there's really no win-or-lose pressure at all", Eckstein continued. "I do want to make it clear that all other day-to-day decisions within the organization will filter through me for a final yes or no, and I will fully be in control of all of our most important competitive matches. I just want the Canadian Soccer Association to get a look at Razov in the role of head coach, to have a chance to evalute him, which is not something they'd have a real good chance to do with me in full control".

Razov, for his part, was greatful for the opportunity. "I can't thank Ian enough for putting such trust in me. I just hope that I live up to his expectations. There's some pressure on me, certainly, but it's not as if these are World Cup matches, so I'll be able to relax at least a little bit and enjoy the opportunity".

retired_thoiyaba

Personal Thoughts, March 10, 2015

This is going to be strange. I've never allowed my assistant manager to have such control, even in a friendly-match situation, in any program I've ever been associated with. I do trust Ante, though. He's done well with our youth program, and really does deserve the opportunity.

I did make it clear when I talked to him though, that I will be on the sidelines with him, as his assistant, in basically a consultant's role. It's his show, for five matches, and I will do my best to stay out of his way. It's a big step for me.

I suppose you could say that the transition of power is beginning, in a sense, very slowly. He also knows that there's no way that I'd give him such control in our most important competitive matches, such as a Gold Cup or World cup. Those are too important, and, quite frankly, my ego is too big to allow someone to take over my program to that extent. He's got enough of a chance, with Brazil and England and Portugal and the United States being extremely difficult matches. I'm anxious and nervous to see how it goes.

retired_thoiyaba

The Razov Experiment
Personal Thoughts - November 30, 2015

I have to say, having reviewed the game tape of all of the games, the Ante Razov experiment was at worst interesting, and at best, I'd say it was mildly successful.

Brazil cancelled their friendly match with us about six weeks prior to the scheduled game, so that left us with games versus England, Portugal, Sint Maartin and The United States.

All in all, I liked what I saw. He used our standard tactic in more of a defensive way than I would have. In fact, all in all, I'd say our defense looked really quite good for the most part, but we couldn't score to save our lives, and that bothered me immensely.

We lost our first match versus England 2-0. Not bad, it could have been worse, but we had a few chances we should have capitalized on but didn't. Their goals were scored by Danny Reed (28the minute) and Peter Treacy (42nd).

Next up was Portugal, another difficult test. We only lost by a goal, 2-1. I have to say this pleased me. Marc Bucic scored our lone goal in the 67th, while their goals were scored by Hugo Almeida (9th) and Marcelo (16th).

Our third friendly of the set was versus Sint Maartin. Now, there was a reason why I was pleased that Razov scheduled this one. I knew (at the time, anyway) that it would be an easy win. I figured we should post at least four or five goals on them. We won 1-0. Jon DeGuzman scored in the 90th minute. I couldn't believe it.

I went into the manager's office after the game and Razov was sitting there having a beer and smoking a cigarette, celebrating as if he'd just won the biggest match of his life. I looked at him and said "Tell me, man-to-man, are you happy with that result?" he just shrugged and said "yeah...it's a win!" "Well, yeah, it's a win, and I congratulate you on that", I responded. "But against a team like that, a 1-0 win won't even register as a blip on the radar. It won't scare anybody. Against a team like that, we should have scored at least 4, maybe five or six, with a fair amount of ease." I felt myself start to get angry, so I paused. "Look, again, I'm happy you won, I congratulate you on your first win at this level, even though it's only a friendly, but we need to do better at getting the ball on the net, period." He nodded his head, I shook his hand and left the office.

Last on our list was The United States. Given our previous results, I was afraid this might be another 16-1 debacle. I was relatively happy with what I saw, considering it was a loss, 3-1. Again, not terrible considering what it could have been. Will Johnson got on the score sheet for the first time in a LONG time in the 40th minute, for our lone goal. Freddy Adu got the scoring rolling in the second minute for the States, and Eddie Johnson added two, in the 4th and 24th minutes.

So, we were 1 and 3 in our four friendly matches. I suppose I expected that, I deliberately scheduled tough matches to see where we stacked up. I think, from now until the World Cup, what I'll do is schedule matches against some easier opposition so that we can at least build a little bit of confidence back up in ourselves and in our system.

retired_thoiyaba

Gearing Up One Last Time

Personal Thoughts, April 5, 2016

Well, here we go, for one last run (or, rather, it will be MY last run) at ultimate international football glory. We start another journey towards a World Cup title on June 11th, when we face Dominica in the first half of a two-game total point qualifying match in the second round of the first phase of qualifying matches. The second game will be played a week later, on June 18th.

Overall, we're fielding another young squad, although the vast majority of these players were a part of the World Cup squad four years ago, and their experience will absolutely be an asset.

I have the usual concerns about whether or not we'll be good enough against the elite nations. In fact, I have to say that thinking about this, and knowing it's my last chance at winning a World Cup with this team, the pressure on myself and my playing and backroom staff is immense. We HAVE to get results, there's just no other option.

I've moved Michael Klukowski from the defensive left to the left side of our midfield, as I've noticed he's become quite accomplished in that area over the last while.

Asmir Begovic will once again be in goal for us. If memory serves me correctly, I believe he's been our keeper in almost all of our most important matches during my time here, with the possible exception of a couple of the qualifying matches in 2009.

Kevin McKenna recently retired, so I will be bringing on a young centre defender, 23 year old Nicolas Thompson. He's young, he's raw but I believe he's talented enough that he won't embarass himself or me.

If we remain healthy, our starting 11 to start the qualifying matches will be:

GK - Asmir Begovic - age 28
DR - Michael Abusabal - age 26
DL - Jason Vickers - age 23
DC - Jason DiTullio - age 32
DC - Nicolas Thompson - age 23
DM - Steve Gazzola - age 25
AM - Nick Gazzola - age 24
MR - Jonathan DeGuzman - age 28
ML - Michael Klukowski - age 34
ST - Marc Bucic - age 24
ST - Mario McLean - age 20

retired_thoiyaba

Canada Roll Over Dominica - Qualify For Second Phase Of World Cup Qualifying

Personal Thoughts - July 1, 2016

Well, that was fun. It seemed like it had been a LONG time since I last had the chance to manage these guys, and I was glad to get back at it. It was doubly nice that we easily disposed of Dominica 6-1 on aggregate. The games were played on June 11th and 18th.

I will admit I probably made a few mistakes, not the least of which was not starting Andrea Lombardo right away. I decided to start a 20 year old striker named Mario McLean. Unfortunately, he didn't play nearly as well as I'd hoped. Fortunately, I had Lombardo listed as a sub, but he didn't actually see the pitch until the second half of the second game (we won the first, 3-0, the second 3-1). I also was probably a little more intense in my dealings with the guys during halftime, and I let some un-necessary anger fly after our first game, when I look back on it. I told them I was angry with them after the first game, in spite of the win. I thought we didn't convert our chances very well, and I made no bones about telling the squad as much.

The first game, I have to say, belonged to Michael Klukowski, on more than one level. About two days before the game, he announced his retirement, effective September 29th of this year. He also informed me that he had earned his coaching accreditation. He's one guy who I'd love to have on my staff, as soon as he retires. To me, there's no bigger trip as a manager than to have someone who you coached, turn into a coach, and join us on our staff.

Now, onto the game. Maybe we were rusty, but we took a LOT longer to score than we should have. Marc Bucic, who has really cemented himself as a starting force on our squad, got us on the board in the 41st minute.

The first half ended without incident, but the second half was incredibly chippy, on both sides. They were lucky they didn't get someone sent off. Fortunately for us, their aggression (probably frustration) and chippiness resulted in two penalty tries, both of which were converted by Michael Klukowski, in the 54th and 70th minutes.

I think the guys were a little nervous about me going off on them again, and they turned those nerves into a much better offensive show in the second game. Even though we equalled our three-goal output from the game previous, it didn't take us nearly as long to convert an opportunity. Marc Bucic once again capitalized on an opportunity with a brilliant strike in the 5th minute. Unfortunately, our clean-sheet streak ended in the 20th minute when Nathan Turner scored a goal off of a far-too-easy opportunity for the Dominca side.

Again, I started Mario McLean in place of Andrea Lombardo, and he just really wasn't even generating that many shots. He was playing far too tentative so I made the switch at the half. Perhaps not surprisingly, Lombardo turned the opportunity into a two-goal second half performance, with goals in the 49th and 63rd performance. Frighteningly, he was injured in the 88th minute with a sprained ankle. I'm told he could be out as long as a couple of months, which would mean that he'd miss our initial phase two match.

We're grouped in with Costa Rica, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic in the second phase. Our only real threat will be Jamaica. We play our first group match on August 17th versus Costa Rica.

On a more personal note, I have to say that it's games and experiences like the one we had against Dominica that make me seriously think about not leaving my post. Being around the guys, especially seeing the level of excitement in the younger guys, is a real trip for me and that's one of the things I'll miss as the manager of this team.

retired_thoiyaba

Canada Storms Through First Game Of Second Phase of World Cup Qualifying, Defeats Costa Rica 6-1

Personal Thoughts - August 20, 2016

One of our largest margins of victory ever. That was the game that I'd been hoping to see us play against a team like that. Looking at it honestly and analytically, however, I knew that the scoreline would look something similar to that. I just hope we can translate that kind of performance over to some of our matches against the bigger, more talented clubs.

Marc Bucic had two goals, in the 1st and 5th minutes (amazing!), Will Johnson had one in the 13th, Midfielder Nick Gazzola had two of his own, in the 45th and 47th minutes and Atiba Hutchinson, a name that really doesn't get mentioned much lately for us, contributed a penalty kick in the 62nd minute.

Our next test comes versus Jamaica. They're always interesting because they're a team which, by all appearances, we should have some success against, but they always come up with an incredible effort against us. I expect the same from them, but I also expect an equal effort from us. We shall see.

retired_thoiyaba

2nd Match of World Cup Phase 2 Qualifying. Canada lose 1-0.

Personal Thoughts, Sept 3, 2016

Ouch. That's all I have to say. This was, without question, the most un-disciplined I've ever seen us. We comitted FOURTEEN fouls, two of those were bookable yellow cards. They committed less than half that many (6). When that happens, by and large, you can guess at the scoreline.

The fouls we committed allowed them to overcome major injuries to three of their starters, and superior posession of the ball by our side. The lone goal came early in the game, in the 14th minute, with Daryl Thomas scoring after Michael Abusabal gave up posession far too cheaply about 30 yards from goal.

Once again, we can't seem to get anything going offensively. They did play well defensively, but we were dominant in the air and in crossing the ball, we just couldn't put the ball in the net.

We have to do better, we've got a talented Dominican Republic side up next, in four days. We will have Andrea Lombardo back for that, I'm pleased to say. He'll be able to give us the lift that we so badly need, I'm certain.

retired_thoiyaba

Canada Get Back On Track, Defeat Dominican Republic 4-0.

Personal Thoughts - September 7th, 2016.

I like quick turnarounds. It gave us a chance to forget about the loss against Jamaica and get back into preparation mode for our game versus the Dominican Republic. Thank goodness our collective memory is short, because we came out of the blocks early and never let up.

Andrea Lombardo's return had the effect I expected it would. He got us on the board early, in the 6th minute. We scored twice more in the first 45 minutes, with midfielder Nick Gazzola scoring in the 18th, and Michael Klukowski scoring in the 45th. I need to make special mention of Klukowski's goal, because he did something that not alot of players have a chance to do.

I couldn't have known it at the time, but the 30 yard bending strike he put in the net in injury time at the end of the first half would end up being his final goal on his final shot as a player. He filed his retirement papers at the end of the game. He will have a place on my staff, likely as my U-20 manager. We'll see though.

Back to the game, our last goal of the game, in the 83rd is also worth mentioning, as midfielder Daniel Johnson scored his first goal for his country, ever. I'm always happy to see stuff like that.

Unfortunately, the news was not all good. Asmir Begovic, our stalwart keeper for almost my entire tenure, was seriously injured with a fractured ankle and will very likely miss the remainder of this qualifying phase. I hope we have enough depth to cover for him. Losing a keeper isn't something I've had to deal with alot, thankfully.

So, we don't play again until October 8th, when we play Costa Rica again. Based on the first result, I expect a fairly easy time but the squad will need to be altered. I need to sleep on this one.

retired_thoiyaba

Canada Lose Shocker To Costa Rica 2-0.

[B]Personal Thoughts, October 8, 2016[B]

We blew it. This was one of those matches where we really had a chance to prove our superiority, but we just couldn't get it done.

I started Sean Fletcher in goal in place of Asmir Begovic, and he only played the first half due to a minor injury, but let in both of our goals in that time period (Jorge Cordero, 9th minute, Jose Ortiz, 17th).

David Santos came on in the second half and shut them down, but our seemingly persistent finishing issues came into play again. We NEED more consistency. If we take 20 shots on net and nine or ten of those are on target, I would hope that at least one or two would go in, considering the calibre of striker that we supposedly have on our side.

Ah...maybe I'm being too harsh. The Costa Ricans really were up to our challenge and are to be congratulated on the shutout and for a great overall effort. We did suffer another injury. Nick Gazzola was injured in the 72nd minute and will likely be out for the next match.

Our next couple of matches are absolutely crucial. We play Jamaica and The Dominican Republic. One loss in either of those two and we'll likely be on the outside of The World Cup looking in, and nobody in this program, least of all me, wants that. Back to the drawing board. We fly home to Edmonton tonight to get ready to play Jamaica four days from now. We usually do well on a quick turnaround schedule. Hopefully that trend continues.