Canada face off with Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday in a qualifier for this summer’s Copa America.
Neither of these sides have previously featured in South America’s top tournament, which has six slots for North American teams and is being held in the USA in June and July.
Canada’s underwhelming display in the CONCACAF Nations League has left them needing to win a playoff clash to secure a spot at the tournament. The pair meet on neutral soil in Texas, with the Canadians heavy favourites to book a Copa America place.
However, defensive issues have plagued Canada in recent internationals and there’s value to be found in another high-scoring game.
Davies is Canada’s star man and he heads into this international window as the third-highest international scorer among this squad. Only Cyle Larin and Jonathan David have bettered Davies’ tally of 15 goals for his country and he has played fewer games than both of those forwards.
Davies doesn’t get a central role with Bayern Munich but he should have a much bigger presence in this must-win game for the Canadians. He usually plays in a more advanced wide role for his country and he found the net in his last outing, opening the scoring against Jamaica in the second leg of their Nations League quarter-final clash.
Davies scored for Canada at the World Cup in 2022, so he’s risen to the big occasion for Canada before. He’s going to be a tough player for Trinidad and Tobago to handle, so he stands out as a well-priced anytime goalscorer option at +137.
Davies’ strike against Jamaica was the seventh time that he’s scored the opening goal for Canada, so consider him in the First Goalscorer market too at +450.
While Canada has plenty of attacking talent that can trouble the underdogs, the defense isn’t that trustworthy. Canada's last five matches have seen both teams score, with their last clean sheet coming in a 0-0 draw with Guatemala in July 2023.
Trinidad and Tobago beat the USA 2-1 when the teams met late last year and they should have high hopes of troubling this Canadian backline. The neutral venue also gives the Trinidad and Tobago a better chance of causing problems, while the they are no strangers to high-scoring contests.
Trinidad and Tobago saw 19 goals across their four Nations League games before making the quarterfinals, where they were beaten 4-2 on aggregate by the USA to finish 2023. They did score four times across their three matches at last summer’s Gold Cup, although they also conceded 10 times at that tournament.
Canada should have little trouble going forward but with just two clean sheets across their last 10 games, expect them to concede at least once. There’s great value to be found in both teams to score at +175, while the favourites can be backed at +240 to win and concede.
Finally, Canada winning a thrilling contest is expected, given that they head into this game having conceded at least twice in five of their previous seven internationals.
Defensive issues are the reason the Canadians are in this clash, having let a 3-1 aggregate lead over Jamaica fall away in their Nations League defeat. Canada conceded twice in three of their four games at the Gold Cup too, including allowing a pair of goals in matches against lesser sides in Cuba and Guadeloupe at that tournament.
Trinidad and Tobago have suffered plenty of comprehensive defeats to CONCACAF’s top teams but there’s reason to believe that they can trouble Canada despite being heavy underdogs. The favourites' defensive record against North America’s best points to this being a high-scoring game, so consider a 4-2 victory for Canada at +5000.
Read the latest news on the Canadian National Soccer Team on site.
Canada | -1000 |
Tie | +800 |
Trinidad and Tobago | +2000 |
Jonathan David (Canada) | -138 |
Cyle Larin (Canada) | -105 |
Jacen Russell-Rowe (Canada) | +120 |
Theo Blair (Canada) | +120 |
Alphonso Davies (Canada) | +137 |
Jacob Shaffelburg (Canada) | +137 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.