Canada Soccer crashes out of CONCACAF Nations League after shocking loss to Jamaica

Canada came out the gates flying, but a tough second half spelled disaster for Les Rouges. (Photo via Kenta Harada/Getty Images) (Kenta Harada via Getty Images)

The Canadian men’s national soccer team narrowly missed their ticket to the 2024 Copa America after a 3-2 loss to Jamaica on Tuesday night in Toronto, Ont.

The result also caused them to crash out of the CONCACAF Nations League tournament.

After scoring Canada’s first-ever goal at a FIFA Men’s World Cup a year ago, Alphonso Davies played the hero once more when he broke the deadlock in the 25th minute.

But the goal wasn’t enough for Mauro Biello’s men, who have areas to improve on before their next match.

GOAL 🇨🇦

ALPHONSO DAVIES puts #CANMNT up 1-0 over JAMAICA 🇯🇲

A 27-PASS sequence is rounded out by Canada’s brightest star after a bit of a bounce on the first shot 💪

It’s 3-1 on aggregate now 😎

🔴 Watch LIVE on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/AnhPduLGTN

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) November 22, 2023

What happened

Tuesday’s match was the return leg of a two-match series with the Reggae Boyz. In the opening leg in Kingston, Jamaica on Saturday, the 45th-ranked Canadians overcame their 55th-ranked opponents 2-1 with goals from Stephen Eustaquio and Jonathan David.

While the series opener was a nail-biter, Canada was in control this time around. Thanks to quick passes and accurate crosses, Les Rouges dominated the first half.

With his goal, Davies, who also plays for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, moved into the top seven all-time leading goalscorers for the Canadian men’s national team, tying Ali Gerba.

Going into the half, the Canucks were comfortable and creative on the ball and looked like they would cruise to an easy win, but after the break, the narrative changed.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s squad came out with renewed energy, and Shamar Nicholson’s rapid-fire brace in the 62nd and 66th minutes gave Canada a scare.

The drama continued as 21-year-old Ismaël Koné provided an equalizer for the Canadians. Shortly after, however, Bobby Armani Decordova-Reid added to Jamaica’s tally from the spot.

As the Canadians had fewer away goals than the Carribeans, they lost the series.

Canada needs to be more clinical

Scoring goals has always been an issue with this Canadian team.

And while the Reds managed to find the net four times this series, there were a slew of missed chances in front of goal.

What becomes clear is that Davies cannot be the only player trusted to score goals consistently.

Athletes like Cyle Larin, Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan must step up in times of need. Instead of being shy and hesitant when approaching the opposition’s goal — as they were at times tonight — the opportunity to score should enlighten the squad.

Acting like a collective on attack, building from the midfield instead of individual stars running the pitch, is another area to address.

“We wanted to stabilize the midfield and readjust to score, but couldn’t do that…we have to manage the game better and know when to build up the pitch,” Biello said in the post-match press conference.

“I am disappointed because the first half was very good. We could have put it away but we didn’t.”

Sharing the disappointment was veteran goalkeeper Milan Borjan, who believes this Canadian team can do so much more.

“We had everything in our hands. This team, to have players like that and do something like this, it’s not acceptable,” he said after the game.

Consistency is key

BMO Field was filled with passionate, energetic fans that surely gave their players a boost — which was evident in the first half.

However, the fans only went so far. Canada’s energy slowly dwindled as time went on, which the Jamaicans took advantage of.

“[Jamaica] were more aggressive and we were too casual. We lost easy balls…and we weren’t able to climb out of that,” Biello told Yahoo Sports Canada.

“We came in the second half thinking everything’s going to be easy. This is unacceptable,” Borjan added.

If Canada wants any chance at forging a path on the world’s stage moving forward, they’ll have to maintain their level of play for the full 90 minutes rather than bursts of promise here and there.

“We gave [Jamaica] the ball and they started to grow and gain momentum. At the end of the day we put ourselves in trouble,” Biello said. “There’s no excuse for some of the performances in the second half.”

The boss explained that moving forward, the team needs to work on their mindset and how they manage every minute on the pitch.

“We weren’t able to manage these moments and our mindset needs to be stronger moving forward…mindset will be addressed first.”

Looking ahead, despite the loss Canada will have another chance to qualify for Copa America in March.