Canada U-23 men fall 3-0 to USA

March 20, 2008

Canwest News Service

Canada's quest for its first Olympic berth in men's soccer since 1984 ended Thursday with the national Under-23 team's 3-0 loss to the United States at LP Field in Nashville, Tennessee.

Freddy Adu was magic from the set-plays, scoring on a pair of free kicks from just outside the penalty area to lift the United States into the Olympic Games.

Adu, who plays with Benfica in Portugal, gave the Americans the lead in the 29th minute off a free kick from just past the corner of the penalty area. Canadian goaltender Joshua Wagenaar of Grimsby, Ontario, appeared to be distracted, as Sacha Kljestan of the U.S. made a play on the ball, but failed to make contact with it.

Adu scored again in the 47th minute, this time lifting the ball over the Canadian wall and past Wagenaar. The goal came after Canadian defender Andre Hainault was cautioned after hauling down U.S. striker Jozy Altidore from just outside the penalty area.

Kljestan ended any hope for a Canadian comeback, finishing off a nice crossing pass from Stuart Holden in the 78th minute. Adu was in on the goal as well, finding Holden open on the wing.

The Americans took control of the game early on, securing most of the possession and generating chances throughout the match. Canada - even after desperation set in after the United States took the lead - were unable to penetrate the American defence.

Midfielder Will Johnson, who scored three times in the tournament, had Canada's best chance of the match, putting the ball over the net from 30 metres out midway through the first half.

Scoring, which was a problem for the Canadian entry at the Under-20 World Cup last summer, came easily for Canada at the Olympic qualifying tournament. Canada finished the round robin with seven goals, tied for first among the eight teams.

Yet, when it counted against the United States, Canada failed to generate many chances - let alone put the ball into the net. The Americans were the best defensive team at the event, allowing only one goal in three round-robin matches.

Honduras earned the other CONCACAF Olympic qualifying spot Thursday, converting on six of seven penalty kicks to get by Guatemala. The Guatemalans scored on only five of their chances from the spot after a scoreless extra-time game.

The United States and Honduras will meet for the CONCACAF U-23 championship final on Sunday. Canada and Guatemala will play off for third place.

Only one of the 16 teams in the men's Olympic tournament remains to be filled, as Ghana will play Nigeria for the final African berth. The other qualified teams include China, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Brazil, Argentina, New Zealand, Netherlands, Serbia, Belgium and Italy.

Canada advanced to the semifinal with a 1-1-1 record in group play, including a 5-0 thrashing of Guatemala in the final round-robin match. The big win was crucial, as it allowed Canada to edge Mexico on goal differential.

Canada opened with a 1-1 tie against Mexico and lost 2-1 to Haiti in their other round-robin match.

Canada U-23 men (BC players in bold)
18-Joshua Wagenaar, 2-Graham Ramalho (9-Andrea Lombardo 54'), 4-Dejan Jakovic, 5-Andrew Hainault, 6-Nikolas Ledgerwood, 7-Andrzej Ornoch, 10-Will Johnson, 11-Tosaint Ricketts, 14-Tyler Hemming, 15-Tyler Rosenlund (17-Marcus Haber 76'), 16-Keegan Ayre (13-Kyle Hall 30')

USA U-23
1-Chris Seitz, 2-Marvell Wynne, 3-Michael Orozco, 5-Nathan Sturgis, 6-Maurice Edu, 7-Stuart Holden, 10-Dax McCarty, 11-Freddy Adu (20-Eddie Gaven 82'), 12-Jozy Altidore (9-Charles Davies 75'), 16-Sacha Kljestan (Robbie Findley 88'), 17-Jonathan Spector

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