The Canadians flew to El Salvador on Tuesday to continue their astonishing run in qualifying for the FIFA World Cup.
Head Coach John Herdman and his players have one goal in mind: to win. But they are aware that the people of the country have their backs as they inch ever closer to a ticket to the Qatar World Cup in 2022.
“We’ve discussed that with our players,” Herdman said before heading to the charter plane that will take the Canadian team to Central America for Wednesday night’s game against El Salvador. We feel the support of the country. And it’s very exciting. »
Canada’s head coach cited defining moments with the home crowd following wins over the United States, Panama and Mexico in Hamilton, Toronto and Edmonton, respectively.
“You had to be there to understand. You had to be there to savor them, he said. Then, the next day, we go back to work.
“I have some of the greatest leaders on this team, who have had great times before, so they’ve been there before. They know that at some point we will have to block out external distractions, bring us back to earth in order to concentrate on the task at hand. Knowing full well that if we don’t get the three points here, and if Panama wins, Mexico wins, USA wins, then we’re back in the thick of it. We would then find ourselves having to fight to ensure that we did not finish fourth in the group. »
“So it’s a crucial game. And the players are aware of that,” he added.
Canada (6-0-4, 22 points) leads the group of eight teams in the final round of the Concacaf qualifying process, four points ahead of Mexico and the United States (the two countries are 5-2- 3, for 18 points). Panama (5-3-2, 17 points) is fourth, four points ahead of Costa Rica (3-3-4, 13 points).
Then, in March, the first three countries in the group will represent North America, Central America and the Caribbean in Qatar. The country that finishes fourth will face a club from Oceania in an intercontinental playoff match, with the winning club joining the top three.
A victory on Wednesday, combined with other results, could allow the Canadians to formalize their participation in the World Cup.
If Canada defeats El Salvador (taking their points to 25), Panama loses to Mexico, the United States loses to Honduras and Costa Rica drops the flag or draws against Jamaica, then the Maple Leaf representatives would get their ticket to Qatar. Panama would then face the United States in March – and under this scenario one of the two countries would not be able to join Canada in the standings – while Costa Rica would have to win all their matches by the end of the process. in order to reach the threshold of 25 ranking points.
However, a more realistic scenario would be for Canada to secure at least a fourth place finish in their pool after Wednesday’s matches.
El Salvador (2-5-3, nine points), Jamaica (1-5-4, seven points) and Honduras (0-7-3, three points) can’t catch Canada.