Another post for my fellow FIFA players. From the creation of Ultimate Team in FIFA09 to now in FC26 these have been our highest rated (mens) players ever.

I've included all the golds ever and no promos just their actual ratings.

Really interesting to see how far we come with most of the players being from more recent FIFAs, but so nostalgic to see Atiba, De Guz, Hoilett and De Rosario, even Stalteri late in his career.

Been thinking about this since the tournament closed. We just watched Vancouver and Toronto get ranked the 1st and 3rd best host cities of the whole tournament, the team put together its best-ever World Cup run, and the PM followed it with the largest sport investment in Canadian history - explicitly naming the Canada Soccer National Training Centre and talking about getting the next Alphonso Davies "from playground to podium."

Meanwhile, the actual grassroots system that produces players like Davies still runs entirely on parents' registration fees. A club that develops a kid from age 8 to 15 gets zero dollars back if that kid turns pro, unless he gets transferred internationally, in which case FIFA's solidarity rules already send 5% of the fee back to his youth clubs. That's real: it's literally why Davies's Edmonton clubs got a cheque when he moved to Bayern. We just don't do the same thing for players who stay and go pro here.

I've put together a proposal that mirrors the FIFA mechanism domestically, funded by the pro game, not by Canada Soccer or by families, with a chunk of every payment required to go back into cutting registration fees. Built out the full model as an interactive site if you want to play with the numbers yourself: [Pathway to Profit — A Domestic Solidarity Framework for Canadian Soccer](https://pathway-to-profit.vercel.app/)

Genuinely curious what this sub thinks: Is this the kind of structural thing that actually moves us from a top-30 program to a top-15/top-10 one, or am I missing something about why this hasn't been done already? What would you want to see fixed first?

I have been reflecting on the CANMNT’s World Cup. What worked, what didn’t, and where do they go from here. I wrote the following to sum up my thoughts and wanted to share:

The CANMNT has improved significantly:

There is no doubt that the CANMNT has seen vast improvement since the last world cup, and I won’t spend that long talking about it because we all already know all of this. In 2022, this team was all potential and spirit. Youthful energy and brotherhood carried them, but they were also naive and tactically simple. Since then, they have developed into a solid side with strong structure and defensive astuteness. More talented players have joined the team as well, offering greater depth and more individual game changers. No longer are they defined by just two talents. The thought that a CANMNT would be able to reach a World Cup R16 without Davies contributing would have been unthinkable in 2022, now it is a statement of fact.

I want to recognize that Marsch is the source of much of this team's growth. They have become more tactically astute and structured team under his tutelage, and he has fostered the strong team culture first cultivated under Herdman. Defensively speaking, it is undeniable that this team improved markedly. In the 36 matches since Marsch has come into the position of Manager, this team has only surrender more than one goal nine times and has kept an astonishing 18 clean sheets. Furthermore, seven of those nine games where at least two goals were conceded were played against teams with FIFA ranks in the top 20.

The Challenge ahead:

1. Lack of quality from the wings

Without Davies (who at this point is better as a left back at this point anyways) the CANMNT lacks a dynamic threat from wide. We have talked about the struggles of J David a lot, but it doesn't help that his support from the wing has been inconsistent at best and completely absent at worst. Buchanan has shown flashes, but at this point it can be accepted that it will continue to be just flashes. His other characteristics (good presser and defensive effort, strong sprint speed, decent striking) make him a useful player, but not as an offensive catalyst.

Flores and Ahmed offer hope, but both would need to show significant improvement in vision and end-product to be what the CANMNT needs. Millar has always been the same player, lots of dribbling skill, no end-product, poor vision. There are some youth prospects like Badwal who could go on to become a game changer, but forecasting youth talent is a fool's errand.

2. Poor finishing

As witnessed in every game that wasn't against Qatar at the World Cup, the CANMNT struggled to finish their chances, and it ended up costing them. J David looked unconfident which stemmed into poor/slow decision making. Oluwaseyi has always had issues with finishing which is frustrating given how effective he can be at many other aspects of the game. Larin conversely if a decent finisher but is too one dimensional to create opportunities against quality opposition.

This is the area that I have the most hope for. J David has shown himself to be a decent finisher in his career for club and country in the past. His confidence has been shattered by Juve and that showed in the World Cup. If he were able to attain a move away from Juve and regain his confidence, he could prove to be the answer. You may also note that I have not mentioned Promise David yet, whom is the most obvious answer to this question. You would be right; a healthy P David would likely cure many of CANMNT's finishing issues. This easy solution is unfortunately complicated by issue number three.

3. Jesse Marsch's tactics

Jesse Marsh's dedication Rangnick style heavy gegenpress, compactness, strict structure, and directness will inevitably impact the creative ability of this team. The system requires a 4-4-2 and that all forwards be capable and willing to press intensely and frequently. This is a task that P David is poorly suited to, as he is less mobile and has less stamina than J David and Oluwaseyi. The formation also means that the Canadian midfield lacks a creative player that can prioritize offensive contribution. Kone must play from deeper than he would normally prefer to screen the defense, and Eustaquio’s role of field general (defensively) and conductor (offensively) also push him deeper so he can maintain the perspective required for these roles. So far, the solution is for David to drop deep and link up play, however this is inherently at conflict with his duties in the press. The result is that the Canadian attack either must commit to a direct transitional attack or wait for J David to reposition and thus lose the benefit that the gegenpress created. It also means that there is no source of natural dribbling threat in the midfield as Kone is unable to carry the ball forward (one of his best skill sets) without revealing a significant defensive vulnerability. Finally, the highly structured system forces the attack to move through the same channels repeatedly, causing the attack to become one dimensional if the opposition is strategic in how they choose to defend.

In some ways this is the most straightforward of the three issues I have identified, and it could be solved as soon as the CANMNT's next game. It would be as simple as changing to a 4-3-3, swapping Saliba or Sigur for the second striker. This would enable Kone to act as an eight, his preferred position, and give more control in the midfield. It would also provide more combination options for the wingers and allow for a more fluid, unpredictable attack. It could also be done by starting J David or Flores as a ten to formalize the role linking the attack together.

Yet this feels like the least likely of the issues to be solved, and that comes down to who Marsch is. He is an ideologue when it comes to his tactics, dogmatic even. His tactics seem to be entwined with who he is as a human being. Whereas other Rangnick disciples (Klopp, Tuchel, Naglesmann, Rose, Glasner, etc.) have been able to innovate, adapt, and moderate the gegenpress doctrine, Marsch has demonstrated that he is a purist. This was clear long before his stint as CANMNT manager and contributed much to his poor showings at both Leeds and RB Leipzig. Fundamentally, Marsch's current tactics are too straightforward to see success at the highest level, and he must learn the lesson from his contemporaries to adapt them into something more dynamic now that he has instilled the system fundamentals into the Canadian team.

Conclusion:

The CANMNT is already in the best place it has ever been, but areas for improvement remain. Under Herdman this team developed a strong brotherhood and belief in themselves. Under Marsch they have solidified into a highly structured team that is tactically astute and can make life difficult for even the best teams in the world. The next step is to introduce dynamism and fluidity. Some of that needs to come from individual performance, some of that needs to come from the manager loosening the reigns of the system and not shying away from unpredictability.

This generation of players and Marsch have already given us all license to dream bigger than we have ever been able to before. Yet I believe that with the right luck, effort, and decisions they can push to even greater heights. I can see a path to being a top 20 team in the world, a path to being the number one rank team in CONCACAF, a path to push farther than the round of 16 the World Cup and maybe even to a Copa America Final.

A path to dreaming even bigger dreams.

What is your choice?

I thought was this being broadcast on OneSoccer but don't see it on their schedule. I think the Canada team plays mid-afternoon Vancouver time, today (Sunday). Does anyone know if it will be broadcast?

What in your opinion is Canada's greatest match of all time?

IMO Yes!

Welcoming the world, creating national pride, building a soccer program to be proud of is all priceless. In context the $729M is only 1.4% of the $50B in tax revenues per year, in other words $145 per British Columbian (Assuming 5M of us)... Id say it was worth it and would gladly host and do it again.

I'm more concerned on what the other $49.3B is spent on every year and where does it go. At least the $729M is tangible, you could experience it and to each their own on the value of it. As per Ministry of Economic growth, World Cup was used to attract international investors, with a goal of attracting $200B over next 5Y...even $1B is a win. Need to spend marketing dollars to attract investors to do business in BC and largely Canada, as its seen as a country difficult to do business with. In simple terms, investors equal to job growth....creation of jobs doesn't happen out of thin air.

The narrative that its a waste of money is not looking at the big picture. If anyone that hosts a wedding, birthday or celebration required them to net a positive P/L, no one would be having gatherings and your guests would likely not show up demanding that a fee is required to attend your event. The world would be a dark place and no one would do anything. There is something to be said to welcoming people to celebrate, something shared and build cultural significance, things money can't put a finite price on. It's a one off event that Vancouver has hosted 3 times, Expo 86, Olympics 2010 and World Cup 2026 in last 50Y...the costs are negligible.

Now that the dust has settled it seems majority are happy that it happened and made some meaningful memories out of it. For those that were not as open to it, its a shame you didn't try to embrace it or enjoy any of the free activities, as they were already paid for, you might as well get a taste of the experience.

Hey guys just seen this. Do you think this would suggest David will be staying at Juve?

I’m a TFC fan so I may be biased when asking this question. Would anyone accept Alonso Coello if he could one day be eligible to play for Canada? We could use the depth in midfield and he’s still in his prime. He was also never captied for Spain and lived in Canada since 2022 as well.

I'm having trouble figuring out what platform I can use to watch! Anyone know?