July 15th Edition

It’s hangover Monday in the football world as over the weekend both the 2024 Copa América and Euros came to an end. What exactly we will do with all this newfound free time remains to be seen.

It won’t last long, however, as the 2024 Paris Olympic games are just around the corner, and CanWNT will be trying to make it back-to-back-to-back-to-back medals.

More on their friendly win against Australia, the CanChamp semis, Canada announcing their squad for the U-20 Concacaf Championship, and the biggest stories in Canadian footy ahead in this week’s edition of The Northern Pitch.

In this week's edition

• 👏 CanMNT, you made us proud

• 🇨🇦 CanWNT pick up pre-Olympic dub

• 🏆 CanChamp Semi-Final fire

• 🌍 Canucks Abroad

• 🏡 Canucks at Home

• 📰 Other News

• ✅ Northern Picks

CanMNT

👏 CanMNT, you made us proud

This weekend, the 2024 Copa América wrapped up, and on the second last day of the competition, Canada were still playing.

Their tournament ended in heartbreaking fashion, as they lost to Uruguay on penalties on Saturday night in the competition’s third-place game. But there is no doubt their incredible run to the tournament’s final four should make Canadians very proud, and optimistic for how this team can rep the country in 2026 and beyond.

Having played a lot of football in hot conditions across the United States during the tournament, Canada coach Jesse Marsch elected to make several lineup changes against Uruguay. Dayne St. Clair, Ali Ahmed, Mathieu Choinière, Tani Oluwaseyi and 18-year-old Fulham CB Luke de Fougerolles all made their first starts of the tournament.

They quickly injected energy into the Canada setup, and despite shipping an early goal to Tottenham’s Rodrigo Bentacur, the reds showed excellent fight to get back into the match. Regardless of what happened before or after, Ismaël Koné’s moment of Zlatan magic that tied the game in the 22nd minute will be seen around the world.

Canada had several chances after that, and looked to have won it late through a goal from the Iceman, Jonathan David, off the bench. For a Canada team that has shown good game management all tournament, however, they were a bit naive after scoring. Instead of shutting up shop, they tried to put the match to bed by staying too open offensively.

Uruguay was never going to have that, and Luis Suarez (who else) equalized the match in extra time. Los Celeste were perfect in penalties, while Koné had his saved and Alphonso Davies tried to panenka when it probably just wasn’t the move, and hit the crossbar, and Canada fell in the shootout.

The exciting thing is, despite finishing fourth at the Copa, Canada are only going to get better from here. Several of their players have been linked with moves to top clubs in Europe — with Koné already moving to Marseille.

The likes of Moïse Bombito, Jacob Shaffelburg, Ahmed, Oluwaseyi and Choinière are all proving to be legit options for Canada going forward.

At the end of the day, CanMNT are ahead of schedule in their development under Marsch. Now it is time to reflect, refresh, and continue to build toward a home World Cup where Canada will now have every confidence that they can compete with the world’s best.

CanWNT

🇨🇦 CanWNT pick up pre-Olympic dub over Australia

Also on Saturday, in their final publicly available match before flying to Paris for the 2024 Olympics, CanWNT put in a strong performance in a 2-1 friendly victory over Australia in Marbella, Spain.

A Canadian turnover led to them conceding the opener in the 24th minute, with Sharn Freier, in her first start for Australia, turning her defender before firing a shot to elude Kailen Sheridan.

Canada replied just before half-time, as Cloé Lacasse sent a dangerous cross into the box, which was fumbled by Aussie goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold and tapped home by Nichelle Prince. Having returned from injury to rejoin the Canadian team, this was a big moment of confidence for the 29-year-old Prince who will be a key player for Canada in attack in Paris.

Canada then found a winner in the 85th minute, as some lovely pressure by Gabrielle Carle won the ball back, before she found Evelyne Viens in the box. The Serie A’s Golden Boot winner wasn’t going to miss from there, and gave Canada the win on the night.

The match—a tier 2 friendly—does not count toward rankings or statistics as both sides were allowed unlimited substitutions and substitution windows. Canada will reportedly play against Nigeria in a behind-closed-doors friendly on July 17.

They then officially turn their attention to New Zealand, who is their first Olympic opponent on July 25. Canada’s group also includes France, who they meet on July 28 and Colombia on July 31.

CanChamp

🏆 CanChamp Semi-Final fire

Yet another cupset could be in the cards in the 2024 Canadian Championship.

On Wednesday, in the first leg of their semifinal against MLS side Toronto FC, four-time Canadian Premier League champs Forge FC took an impressive 2-1 lead on aggregate in their series.

With two outstanding goals inside the opening 14 minutes, Forge instantly showed that they meant business. Béni Badibanga demonstrated why he is the CPL’s most exciting baller by chipping Luka Gavran in the 11th minute. Kwasi Poku, remember the name, then decided to ball out with a lovely backheel flick to double Forge’s lead.

The Hamilton club could have had a few more, but were denied by the woodwork. Toronto FC ultimatley got a late goal through Prince Owusu, but will still be heavily disappointed with the result, so much so that they sacked their President Bill Manning the next morning.

Elsewhere on Wednesday, the Vancouver Whitecaps continued their quest for the CanChamp three-peat as they beat Pacific FC 1-0 at Starlight Stadium in the first leg of that semifinal.

Ryan Gauld scored the lone goal of the match on a lovely flicked header. It could have been more, but 20-year-old Pacific GK Emil Gazdov made a few outstanding saves to keep the tie close.

Unfortunately, due to the Leagues Cup, Canadian footy fans will have to wait a hot minute (or more like a hot month) for the second legs which will be played on August 27 at BMO Field and BC Place respectively.

Canucks Abroad

🌍 Canucks Abroad

⭐️ Julia Grosso signed with the Chicago Red Stars. CanWNT star Julia Grosso will now call America’s midwest gem her home. Chicago is a sporting city where players enter and leave as legends, and Julia will be among them. The former Juventus midfielder has signed a three-year deal with the Red Stars.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Daniel Jebbison signed for Bournemouth. The CanMNT-eligible striker moved from Sheffield United to Bournemouth. Jebbison has been on the radar of a few clubs this past year, such as Everton, Borussia Dortmund, and Juventus. One thing left uncertain is who he would represent at the senior level. The Oakville, Ontario-born striker has spent most of his career with the England youth team. Could Canada Soccer persuade him to play for CanMNT? Time will tell.

🇫🇷 Theo Bair to Auxerre? The #CanMNT summer rumours aren’t over yet. Motherwell’s 15-goal man could also be joining those on the move following Canada’s Copa América time. French sporting magazine L’Équipe are reporting that the newly-promoted Ligue 1 side could make an approach for the 24-year-old priced at €1.3m excluding add-ons. A tidy amount of money for the Steelmen, who signed the Bair on a free last summer.

🛡️ More interest in Bombito and Cornelius. Attention also continues to grow on the #CanMNT’s centreback pairing following the Copa. Per TSN’s Matthew Scianitti, Lyon have increased their bid for Moïse Bombito, throwing an additional $1 million at Colorado after initial bids fell through. Swedish outlet Expressen, meanwhile, have reported a €3-4m bid tabled by Ligue 1’s Stade Brest for Derek Cornelius — just over half of Malmö’s €5-6m asking price for the defender.

🇧🇪 Promise David’s scoring boots. Questions around his role — first-team, or U23 team — seemed to arise after the 23-year-old’s move to Belgium. Well, those questions were closer to being answered this week, as Promise scored in a livestreamed friendly against Greek giants PAOK. Bright lights ahead assured, if RUSG go far in Europe this season.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 A Scottish League Cup kickoff. The competition kicked off on Saturday, marking the official start of the Scottish season. Motherwell’s Harry Paton, Dunfermline’s David Wotherspoon and Ross County’s Victor Loturi all started in wins for their sides. Spoony would also pick up an assist off a corner in the Pars’ 3-0 win over The Spartans.

🇮🇪 Canadians help steer Treaty to victory. Danielle Steer continued to pick up where she left off in U SPORTS, scoring the insurance marker for Treaty in a 2-0 win over DLR Waves on Saturday. A pair of Albertans would also make an impact, with Delana Friesen notching the first, and Annie Ulliac keeping a clean sheet. Up and up for CEO Ciara McCormack’s Canuck contingent.

⚽️ Woobens Pacius scores again. The former Forge man scooped up a loose rebound on Wednesday to give a ten-man Huntsville side, a 2-1 win in MLS NEXT Pro action. Pacius has now scored in two of Huntsville’s three wins this season — all coming since the start of June.

🙏 Liam Fraser on the mend. Difficult news for the former Red came down from Dallas on Saturday. The club announced that the industrious midfielder would be out for 12-16 weeks to recover from surgery to repair an adductor tendon and sports hernia. We’re wishing the best for LF, hoping for a quick and smooth recovery and return to the pitch.

Follow Canucks Abroad on Twitter and Instagram.

Canucks at Home

🏡 Canucks at Home

💼 Christina Litz named first President of the Northern Super League. Canada’s pro women’s league continues to tick off boxes ahead of their April 2025 kick-off date. Litz arrives with a wealth of experience, with former employers including the CFL, Woodbine Entertainment and True North Sports and Entertainment. The move also sees Diana Matheson move into the new role of Chief Growth Officer; extremely fitting for the NSL’s spearhead.

🌟 Shola Jimoh shines for York. The forward joined the company of TJ Tahid and Lowell Wright, becoming just the third 16-year-old, and, second-youngest to score in CPL history. Jimoh, a product of Brampton East SC and the TFC Academy, signed an Exceptional Young Talent deal with York at the start of June. Talk about a bright future.

Follow Canucks at Home on Twitter and Instagram.

Other News

📰 In other news this week

👋 BILL MANNING SACKED. The clock on the Bill Manning era in Toronto drew to a stop just shy of nine years this week, after the TFC (and Argos) president parted ways with MLSE on Thursday. Manning’s resignation came in the wake of a watershed 2-1 loss to Forge in the first leg of the CanChamp semi-finals, the club’s first to a CPL side.

✍️ CF Montreal signed Tom Pearce. CFM drew first blood in the opening week of the Canadian transfer window amongst the MLS sides. MTL signed 26-year-old Wigan Athletic fullback Tom Pearce until 2026, with an option for 2027.

🇨🇦 Canada announced the roster for the 2024 Concacaf U20 Championship. 15 of the 21 players who played in the qualifiers for this tournament have returned to the squad. Due to club commitments and injuries, Ivan Pavela, Jovan Ivanisevic, Luc de Fougerolles and Lazar Stefanovic cannot join the team. The full squad list can be found here.

🔵 CF Montréal send the ATL packing. With Le Classique against Toronto FC coming up next week, the CFM win came at the right time to improve form. MTL’s defence was proven resilient and tidy without the vital defensive leadership of Joel Waterman and Samuel Piette. Ruan scored for MTL in the second half, and Raheem Edwards put in a serious shift throughout. The game ended 1-0 for Montréal.

🔴 Speaking about getting ready for Le Classique, despite losing to Forge midweek, TFC picked up a vital win against Philadelphia. Despite the away team drawing first blood, Toronto’s attack was relentless and seemingly never-ending. That pressure led to Philly conceding an own goal and the match-winner, scored by Deandre Kerr. Bernadeschi started cooking from the beginning. However, Insigne’s introduction in the second half changed the rhythm of the game, with Insigne contributing to Kerr’s goal. The game ended 2-1 for TFC. Le Classique is promising to be an exciting fixture next week.

🌊 Brian WhiteCAPS. Do you like that dad joke? We sure do. Brian White continues to be the beating heart of the Whitecaps attacking prowess. White scored a brace, and Ryan Gauld provided two assists against St. Louis. As we say every week, the offensive duo of White and Gauld is the most coherent and dangerous partnership among Canadian clubs. With Fafa Picault picking up form and Ali Ahmed returning from Copa America, the Caps are about to make a serious run into the rest of the season. The game ended 4-1 for Vancouver.

🏟️ Ottawa, dominant again on the road. Starting off a shortened three-game weekend on Friday in Langley, Ottawa returned to the win column after last week’s blip against Pacific. A mazy run from Ballou Tabla would kick things off, before Rubén del Campo doubled the lead with his Golden Boot race-tying seventh goal of the season after initially hitting the crossbar. The CPL leaders would cap off with one from Sam Salter, as they wrapped up a 3-0 win despite end-to-end action.

🐎 Nine Stripes extend their gap to 3rd in the Foothills. York continue to look inevitable following their midseason coaching change, as Benjamín Mora’s side wrapped up a 2-1 win against draw-heavy Cavalry on Saturday. Mo Babouli hit a peach of a free-kick to start off the scoring. 16-year-old Shola Jimoh was up next, breaking records to become the second-youngest goalscorer in league history. Tobias Warschewski hit back late-on to rejoin the three-way tie atop the Golden Boot race, but it would be too little, too late, for Tommy Wheeldon Jr’s Horsemen.

🔨 Forge turn it around with minutes to spare. Forge prevented it from being an all-road sweep across the league on Sunday, thanks in large part to Kwasi Poku’s sixth and seventh goals of the season. The visitors, Pacific, would get on the board first after Reon Moore was brought down by Malik Owolabi-Belewu, stepping up to convert the spot-kick himself. KP’s first would come just after half-time, beating the back line on a delicious David Choinière delivery. The second, with #CanMNT head coach Jesse Marsch in attendance, would get scrambled home by the young wingback-turned-striker off a corner in the 85th minute. The Hammers would also leapfrog Pacific for 3rd in the table with the 2-1 win to cap off the weekend.

✅ Northern Picks

Eric Beard (@bearderic) is a Creative Director who’s worked for the likes of Nike and EA SPORTS, and is also the founder of Where Is Football (@whereisfootball).

📚 What to read

I’m going to stick to South American classics inspired by Copa América. Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano’s “Soccer In Sun and Shadow” is just an all-timer, and a bridge to making peace with Uruguay after Luis Suarez.

📺 What to watch

El Secreto De Sus Ojos (The Secret In Their Eyes) is an amazing thriller, which contains a 5 minute chase scene that happens in the middle of an Argentinian stadium on a matchday.

🎧 What to listen to

Ryan Castro upped the bar for artists who love football, with his collaboration with the Colombian national team, featuring a verse from Luis Diaz. Low key propelled the team to the final.

✅ Who to follow

I’m doubling down on Ryan Castro. He’s been traveling with the Selección all tournament, and the content is incredible. Terrace Forever is a new collective bring a fresh creative lens to the game, their plinths for the euros have been fantastic.