A cadre of Canuck veterans - Dwayne De Rosario, Kevin McKenna, Ante Jazic, Lars Hirschfeld, andJulian De Guzman, all over 30 - are desperate to make the current World Cup qualifying campaign count. “For a lot of the guys, it’s our last chance to get to the World Cup,” 31-year-old midfielder De Guzman told FIFA.com, the urgency clear in his voice.
“Confidence is high and there’s more stability in the team than in previous campaigns,” said De Guzman, who was in the sides that went out early, and badly, in qualifying for 2006 and 2010. It’s been 26 years since Canada made their one and only appearance at a FIFA World Cup finals, crashing out of Mexico 1986 after three straight losses.
While the traditional CONCACAF powers like Mexico, USA and Costa Rica received automatic berths to the current semi-final round, Canada were forced to play in a pre-qualifying group. “It was a bonus for us,” said De Guzman about the grueling schedule, which took them far afield to places like Puerto Rico and St. Lucia. “We were able to play six competitive games we wouldn’t have otherwise played. We got experience you just can’t get in friendlies. We were on the road, with guys fighting for spots. We suffered together.”
Road tested Team Canada
They also prospered together, going undefeated and finishing first in the section. “By the time we got to Havana, we were ready,” added De Guzman, a stocky and muscular holding midfielder who knows when to burst into attack. The first game of their semi-final round, a tricky road test against Cuba, ended in a 1-0 win for the Canadians. “It’s not easy to play on the road in CONCACAF,” the player reflected.
“Confidence is high and there’s more stability in the team than in previous campaigns,” said De Guzman, who was in the sides that went out early, and badly, in qualifying for 2006 and 2010. It’s been 26 years since Canada made their one and only appearance at a FIFA World Cup finals, crashing out of Mexico 1986 after three straight losses.
While the traditional CONCACAF powers like Mexico, USA and Costa Rica received automatic berths to the current semi-final round, Canada were forced to play in a pre-qualifying group. “It was a bonus for us,” said De Guzman about the grueling schedule, which took them far afield to places like Puerto Rico and St. Lucia. “We were able to play six competitive games we wouldn’t have otherwise played. We got experience you just can’t get in friendlies. We were on the road, with guys fighting for spots. We suffered together.”
Road tested Team Canada
They also prospered together, going undefeated and finishing first in the section. “By the time we got to Havana, we were ready,” added De Guzman, a stocky and muscular holding midfielder who knows when to burst into attack. The first game of their semi-final round, a tricky road test against Cuba, ended in a 1-0 win for the Canadians. “It’s not easy to play on the road in CONCACAF,” the player reflected.
It was one of only two wins away from home for any of the teams in that round of qualifying, and it was immediately followed by a disappointing goalless draw against Honduras in Toronto. “We let two points slip away that day,” said De Guzman, identifying home form as a problem. “We still need to work on that killer instinct in front of goal,” he admitted.
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