Canada received the inaugural Canadian Protect Match on Tuesday evening regardless of shedding to African champion Ivory Coast 5-4 in a penalty shootout.
The sport went to a shootout after it completed knotted at 0-0 after 90 minutes.
The Thirtieth-ranked Canadian males completed with 4 factors, one forward of No. 86 New Zealand and No. 25 Ukraine and two forward of No. 41 Ivory Coast.
Victory was assured for Canada simply by attending to the shootout, given it might end the evening with not less than 4 factors — with two factors for a shootout win and one for a shootout loss — whereas nobody else had greater than three. A regulation win was price three factors on the match.
Jonathan David, Matheu Choiniere, Derek Cornelius and Ismael Cone Scored for Canada within the Shootout. Badra Ali Sangare Stopped Tani Oluwaseyi and luc de figeralles.
WATCH | Canada falls to Ivory Coast on penalties however wins Canadian Protect on factors:
Canada falls to Ivory Coast in penalty kicks, nonetheless captures inaugural Canadian Protect
Canada’s Luc de Fougerolles kick got here up quick, and Mohamed Diomande’s objective gave Ivory Coast a 5-4 victory over Canada in penalties Tuesday in Toronto.
Clement Akpa, Jereme Boga, Emmanuel Latte Lath, Franck Kessie and Mohamed Diomande scored for Ivory Coast within the shootout, beating Dayne St. Clair. Mory Gbane missed the goal.
Ukraine defeated New Zealand 2-1 within the early recreation Tuesday, leaving each groups at 1-1-0 with three factors. That end result meant Ivory Coast needed to win by two targets to take the trophy.
The Canadians defeated Ukraine 4-2 within the match opener Saturday whereas Ivory Coast misplaced 1-0 to New Zealand.
Ivory Coast is presently ranked fifth in Africa by FIFA — behind No. 12 Morocco, No. 19 Senegal, No. 32 Egypt and No. 36 Algeria. However the Elephants are the reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions and have been ranked as excessive as No. 12 on the earth.
Ivory Coast regarded harmful, comfortably transferring the ball round as drums resonated in its supporters’ part at BMO Subject. The Ivorian ‘keeper had little to do within the first half apart from watch his workforce from afar.
Each groups managed only one shot on the right track earlier than the break with Canada by no means actually discovering its rhythm. The second half was uneven and chippy with loads of stops and begins earlier than an introduced crowd of 18,489 at BMO Subject.
As promised, Canada coach Jesse Marsch fielded virtually a wholly totally different lineup with solely centre again Cornelius retaining his spot from the Ukraine beginning 11. Veteran ahead Cyle Larin served as captain for the primary time.
Daniel Jebbison, a 21-year-old ahead with England’s Bournemouth, received his third cap in his first begin. Vancouver Whitecaps winger Jayden Nelson additionally made his first begin, incomes his seventh cap.
It was a extra skilled group of starters, with a mixed cap rely of 369 going into the sport in comparison with 241 for the beginning 11 in opposition to Ukraine. Larin, Jonathan Osorio and Richie Laryea accounted for 226 of Tuesday’s whole.
Osorio’s eighty fifth cap moved him into third place on the Canadian males’s all-time checklist behind Julian de Guzman (89) and Atiba Hutchinson (105). Canadian midfielder Stephen Eustaquio was honoured earlier than the sport for incomes his fiftieth cap in opposition to Ukraine.
St. Clair began in objective. The Minnesota United ‘keeper is tied for the MLS lead in shutouts with eight and ranks second in goals-against common at 0.88.
WATCH | Canada defeats Ukraine in match opener:
Jonathan David scores twice, Canada downs Ukraine at Canadian Protect
Jonathan David scored the primary two targets en path to a 4-2 Canadian win over Ukraine on the Canadian Protect match from BMO Subject.
Joel Waterman put the ball within the Ivory Coast objective within the sixth minute solely to see the offside flag go up. On the different finish, St. Clair stopped a Twenty first-minute free kick whipped in by Nicolas Pepe, previously of England’s Arsenal and now with Spain’s Villarreal.
Canadas finest probabilities of the primary half got here off a free kick and two corners because the clock wound down, however every time the ultimate ball was off beam.
Three of Canada’s again 4 — Cornelius, Waterman and Sam Adekugbe — have been on yellow playing cards by the forty eighth minute.
An unmarked Pepe wasted an excellent probability within the 52nd minute when his header was off beam. Quickly after, Waterman made a saving sort out to cease Pepe.
Ivory Coast argued unsuccessfully for a penalty kick within the 61st minute after Ibrahim Sangare went down within the Canada field making an attempt to get to a fast free kick as the sport grew extra bodily.
David and Tajon Buchanan, who accounted for 3 targets in opposition to Ukraine, got here off the bench within the 76th minute as Canada regarded for a objective.
Adekugbe needed to be helped off the sphere within the 83rd minute, favouring his leg after taking place.
Canada had by no means confronted Ivory Coast earlier than. The final time it confronted an African facet was on the World Cup in Qatar in December 2022 when it misplaced 2-1 to Morocco in its last group-stage recreation.
The Ivory Coast squad attracts on gamers from golf equipment in Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey.
Canada heads to the CONCACAF Gold Cup subsequent, opening in opposition to No. 95 Honduras on June 17 in Vancouver earlier than finishing Group B play in Houston in opposition to No. 90 Curacao and No. 81 El Salvador on June 21 and 24, respectively.
Canada went into Tuesday’s match with a 7-4-5 document beneath Marsch, with a type of ties turning right into a penalty shootout loss to Uruguay and one other right into a shootout win over Venezuela. His earlier three video games in Canada — in opposition to Ukraine, Suriname and Panama — have been all victories.
Ivory Coast returns to World Cup qualifying play in September. It presently leads Group F in African qualifying with a 5-0-1 document, one level forward of No. 79 Gabon within the six-country group that additionally consists of No. 140 Burundi, No. 111 Kenya, No. 126 Gambia and the 203rd-ranked Seychelles.
