Having won 11 of their last 12 competitive internationals, Canada can land an upset at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, according to our props column…
USA v Canada
Sunday 18 July, 22:00
Live on Premier Sports 1 and Betfair Live Video
Both of these sides head into this match safe in the knowledge that they have already qualified for the quarter-finals.
What will be at stake here is first place in Group B – and Canada are currently in the box seat on that front.
A draw will be good enough for them to finish atop the pool and probably face Jamaica next; USA must win if they want to (probably) avoid Costa Rica.
The situation could well lead to a fairly open game and the Canadians certainly should not be discounted.
They’ve won 11 of their 12 competitive games since the last Gold Cup in 2019, a run which has taken them into the final stage of World Cup qualifying for the first time in more than 20 years. One of their wins in that period came against the USA.
Here they will be without midfielder Stephen Eustaquio due to suspension.
Both sides are already without some of their stars – think Canada’s Alphonso Davies and USA’s Christian Pulisic – but the Canadians have swatted aside Haiti and Martinique so far, striker Cyle Larin netting three goals, and will arrive at this game full of confidence.
They may well see this as s free-hit against a side who haven’t been at their best.
They struggled to a 1-0 win over Haiti on matchday one and although they responded in fairly emphatic style, their subsequent 6-1 scoreline did only come against Martinique.
Plenty of new faces have been blooded by boss Gregg Berhalter and producing the goods against Canada may well prove a lot tougher.
At the prices, Canada look worth a dart.
They are out at 4/1 to repeat their 2019 win over the Americans, while adding both teams to score takes the price up to 8.85.
Both of Canada’s games so far have seen this bet land, while the US conceded to the lowly-ranked Martinique – the fifth time in eight games they’ve failed to keep a clean sheet.
Yes, it’s a long shot, but one that probably shouldn’t be as long as it is.
Source: BetFair Tips
