Having left Canada at a tender age to pursue footballing glory in the Old World while simultaneously escaping winter weather barely suitable for human habitation, many European-based Canadian footballers spent the weekend ruing the misfortune of being stuck in winter weather barely suitable for human habitation.
But being good Canadian passport holders, almost all of our Euro-based players trundled through the blowing snow and cancelled flights to complete their scheduled matches. So on the one weekend it would have been acceptable to trot out the classic Canadian excuse of bad weather to explain the lack of notable performances, we couldn't.
The standout was this volley by Mallorca's maybe-Canadian Jonathan de Guzman. Whether junior deGuz warrants mention in a column about Canadian footballers is irrelevant, especially during slow weeks for enthusiastic Canadians. I certainly see no harm in showcasing what Spanish football mega-portal Marca.com dubbed a "golazo."
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
It's a weird paradox to be trapped in, this following Jono de Guzman stuff. I can't recall in my brief history of sports fandom ever actually wanting a player to be good, but not that good if you know what I mean?
(As in playing well enough to shine for Canada but not well enough to be called up by the Dutch squad.)
As for Canadians who are publicly excited to play for Canada, Simeon Jackson finally got back into the starting eleven with Norwich City in the Championship, lasting 67 minutes in a winning effort.
Goalmouth Lothario Josh Simpson served a suspension for accumulated yellow cards and sat out Manisaspor's 1-0 win over Instanbul Buy in Turkey.
In Bundesliga 2, Rob Friend and Marcel de Jong stared at each other intently for 90 minutes from opposing benches in a top of the table clash between Hertha Berlin and Augsburg, as neither team deemed it necessary to put their Canadian on the pitch during the 1-1 draw.
Augsburg is now top of the table on goal difference at the halfway mark of the season. The top two Bundesliga 2 teams gain automatic promotion, while the 3rd place team plays a playoff against the 3rd-last team in Bundesliga. That third-place team is Energie Cottbus, home of 19-year-old Canadian defender Adam Straith. In a perfect world, all three teams go into the Bundesliga next year and we have three Canadians playing in one of the best competitions in Europe!
It's an airtight fantasy, except for the fact that none of the three actually plays regularly in the second division. Canada supporters who know a lot more about German football than me are convinced that while Bundesliga promotion would benefit Friend, it would condemn young Straith and de Jong to the bench forever.
What do you think the chances are that any of these guys would enjoy regular playing time in the German top flight?
Photo credit: Jean Farrugia