Generally speaking, there's not much a manager can say three days ahead of a continental championship. The squad has been picked, they're in the middle of training and all you can really do is hope that no one gets injured or wanders off into the woods before the tournament gets underway.
So it was on Thursday, as interim head coach Colin Miller (who we now pretty much know won't be in that role for much longer) spoke to the media about Canada's upcoming run at the Gold Cup, which gets underway with a group-stage match against Martinique on Sunday.
"The attitude has been terrific at training," said Miller. "And I'm very excited to be preparing now for what should be a big challenge for us."
Indeed, Colin. Indeed.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Miller noted that some of the team's youngsters -- Jonathan Osorio, Keven Aleman, Kyle Bekker -- have been showing well in training, but "as you can imagine, it's another step when you throw them into a fixture." As for 22-year-old defender Adam Straith -- currently unattached, but who Miller worked with during his time with the Whitecaps -- Miller says he has "no concerns about throwing him into the mix" and "we're hoping that if he gets a chance to play, he puts himself in the shop window."
A number of players will be hoping to shop themselves at this tournament, but that plan has been slightly derailed for striker Randy Edwini-Bonsu, who picked up a minor knee injury in training. Specifically, he "sort of whacked his knee on the hard training surface". Miller said REB would be doubtful for the Martinique game, which doesn't bode well for a team that will struggle to score goals even with a full squad available.
For instance, they only scored once against PDL side Ventura County Fusion in a warm-up match on Tuesday! That's a cause for alarm, right?
"If anyone reads too much into (the result of that match), I think it would be foolish," said Miller.
Oh. Alright then.
"I've played in (that kind of) fixture before... It's like the first team playing against the reserve team; for the most part, the reserve team (in this case, the PDL team) will beat the first team (in this case, the Canadian national team... although it was a 1-1 draw), just because there's so much to play for."
He noted that the idea was to give every player on the squad 45 minutes of playing time (which he did, aside from the three goalkeepers, who each played 30 minutes) -- "that's all the exercise was for."
Phew, faith restored! So if we expunge that result, we can go back to saying Canada's scored one goal in five matches this year. Wait a minute.
On that note, Miller said it would be important for the players (particularly some of the youngsters) to be aware of, and fulfill, their defensive responsibilities. That'll be especially important in what Miller admits is a "tough" group -- one that also includes Panama and Mexico.
"We're not in a position to under-estimate anyone," he said. "We have to respect the opposition, and it's down to what we do, rather than (what the opponent does)."
While Miller declined to comment on the manufactured controversy by TFC's Ryan Nelsen and Kevin Payne over Canada's player selection, he wasn't shy in heaping praise on his squad's new captain, Will Johnson.
"I've certainly admired will for some time," he said. "From day one of my involvement with the men's national team [in his current stint, presumably], Will would have been my captain.
"He brings a winning mentality, he brings a fierce competitiveness to his play, he's a leader within the group. He's a natural leader. ... For a Canadian to be a captain on an American team (Portland Timbers), that's a real testament (to him)."
The 26-year-old will be the young captain of a young team. But that doesn't mean Miller will throw all of his inexperienced charges to the wolves: "To put a full team of young players out on Sunday (against Martinique) wouldn't be the right way to do it."
Still, it will be reassuring to some Canadian fans that the CSA has confirmed that the match against Martinique does count for cap-tying purposes (despite the fact Martinique is a non-FIFA team). All a player needs to do is set foot on the pitch for 10 seconds of that match to be permanently cap-tied to Canada.
Some fans will get very excited about that. 'Cause hey, we've all got to get excited about something.
Canada's first match of the Gold Cup is against Martinique on Sunday, July 7 at 2:30 pm PT / 5:30 pm ET on Sportsnet World.
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