What we've learned from Canada through the first half of the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying - The Athletic

Sam Adekugbe walked alongside his Canadian teammates, smiling and waving to the 48,806 fans in Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton after the 1-0 win against Costa Rica on Friday night. He had just played one of his better games in a Canada shirt, personifying the depth of a team that remains the only undefeated side in the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.

Yet even while smiling, Adekugbe was far from satisfied.

“We know we could have picked up more points,” said Adekugbe of the Canadian team, sitting in third place — one point behind the U.S. and Mexico. “We know what our ambitions are and we just have to keep pushing for three points every game. We are happy, but we’re not content.”

When Canada began their run in the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, no one on the team was under any illusions of how difficult the road ahead of them to the 2022 World Cup would be.

“It’s the start of a journey and we’ve got the ability to get better,” said Canada head coach John Herdman back in September.

Two and a half months later and improvement has come. They are still in line for a spot at the World Cup. By the standings alone, Canada has separated themselves from CONCACAF’s muddled middle tier of teams and can claim a spot among the region’s elite. But midway through this final round of qualifying, the team is far from a finished product.

So with one game against every opponent finished, what have we learned about this Canadian side?

Jonathan David needs to carry his strong club form over to his national team 

David did exactly what he needed to do against Costa Rica, working as a poacher close to goal to sniff out a loose ball and then put together an excellent finish to give Canada the lead and the win.

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2021-11-13 20:15:00Z
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