Canada Humiliates USMNT in CONCACAF Nations League 3rd Place Match | OneFootball

The USMNT are looking to bounce back after their crushing last-minute loss to Panama in the CONCACAF Nations League semi-finals. Now, fighting for third place, they face Canada. A big talking point vs Panama was newly appointed coach Pochettino’s lineup, particularly the exclusion of Giovanni Reyna. The trend continues tonight with no Reyna in the startling lineup. Matt Turner starts in goal after backup Zach Steffen was ruled out with the flu, much to the dismay of USMNT fans.

An Intense Start

The game started off intense with Canada having early chances and a heavy collision with US forward Patrick Agyemang and Canada’s Alistair Johnston. Following this, Canada’s Alphonso Davies would leave the game injured after going down for the second time in the opening ten minutes. The intensity would continue with countless fouls, mostly from Canada, that saw Pochettino angry on the touchline and Christian Pulisic, wearing the armband for the US, confronting the referee several times.

All Tied Up

Canada scores in the 26th minute after sloppy defensive work from the US. Their embarrassing form continues with individual errors costing them. Agyemang finally gets his moment with a goal in the 35th minute with a great play by Diego Luna. The first half ends with the teams tied, a goal a piece. Attacking wise, the US were more dominant after Agyemang’s goal. Still, Canada remained the biggest attacking threat.

Seeing Red... Cards

Canada wastes their chance to score early in the second half as a sloppy pass from McKenzie falls to Canada’s player… who skies it over the post. Right after, Canada’s coach Jesse Marsch gets sent off with a red card after stepping onto the pitch following a crazy run of play that saw Canada’s David go down the box without a penalty call. The call was correct, as there was no contact and David simply slipped. David got his redemption quickly, giving Canada the lead right before the hour mark. If there wasn’t enough chaos, Kone makes a ridiculous move, pulling Pulisic by the jersey for 30 yards, resulting in a yellow card. Wild.

A Bizarre Sequence of Events

In a confusing sequence, Pochettino subs off McKennie, Pulisic, and Adams while being a goal down. While as a whole, the team looked bad overall, this team needs a goal. That’s it. While not great, those aren't the kind of profiles you take out when you're losing. Reyna finally gets subbed in about 74 minutes too late, followed by Brian White, for some reason. Pochettino’s strategy doesn’t look like he wants to win. Outside of a few exceptions, the players don’t look like they want to win either. Canada was in full throttle while the US couldn’t get going. The game does end in a fight between Reyna and… the entire Canadian team, though. That’s something. It’s wild to think that next summer, they’re in the spotlight hosting World Cup 2026.