I think that this is an ideal situation in terms of getting him back to 100% in top form, without risk, lowering the risk of potential injuries. We're monitoring all the guys [in the Canada squad] who have had long-term injuries, and trying to communicate with them and with their clubs to be on the cautious side of their return-to-play protocols.
MONTRÉAL, Canada -- Back when he was Melbourne Victory coach, Tony Popovic once described the chance to play the role of villain and ruin an opponent's fairytale as beautiful. If he still feels the same way as Socceroos boss, then Friday evening's 1-0 win over Canada might have been one of the most magnificent victories that he's been a part of. Canada's meeting with Australia at Montréal's Stade Saputo was supposed to be a homecoming and a celebration.
"Everything was leading to this. She was born for this," her former Penn State University head coach Erica Dambach told BBC Sport. "Yes, it's happened young, but it hasn't happened without years of preparation to get into this environment. "Sometimes when it happens to young players, it comes on quickly and maybe they've got six months to deal with the emotions and the media training. Liv has been experiencing this stuff since she was 15 years old."
Despite both Canada and Puerto Rico having already clinched a 2025 AmeriCup quarterfinals berth, there was still plenty of incentive for the SMNT to win their final Group B contest. With the way the rest of the tournament was shaking out (including the USA suffering an upset loss to Uruguay), Canada had a chance to clinch the top seed heading to the knockout stages, and all but guarantee a quarterfinals matchup against the lowest seeded, Colombia.
