All roads will lead to producing the best professional players we have ever produced

Coach John Herdman’s travel to Toronto coincided with the return leg of CONCACAF Champions League Round of 16 series at BMO Field on Tuesday 27 February. Toronto FC hold a 2-0 lead in the series after their away win in Commerce City over opponents Colorado Rapids. Canadian Jonathan Osorio scored the opening goal of the series.

“We need to define our EXCEL Program on the men’s side and we need to get in an agreement around the definition,” said John Herdman, Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team Head Coach and Men’s National EXCEL Director. “We need to get in agreement around the philosophy and some of the principles that will guide the decision making on how we develop players, where we develop players, and more importantly how we track them through to the Men’s National Team and how we create synergies so that all roads lead to producing the best professional players we have ever produced.”

Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team will face New Zealand on 24 March during the upcoming FIFA international window. The two sides will meet in Murcia, Spain for the Saturday afternoon match at Pinatar Arena. This fixture will be the first official match with John Herdman at the helm of the Men’s National Team since he was announced as Head Coach and Program Director on 8 January 2018.

Fans can watch the 24 March match live via CanadaSoccer.com kicking off at 16.00 local / 10.00 ET / 7.00 PT. In addition, exclusive behind-the scenes content will be available on Canada Soccer’s digital channels including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube from the time the team assembles in camp to their departure back to their professional environments.

Canada will kick off their 2018 international season against New Zealand on 24 March.#CANMNT https://t.co/UdvUHOSi77 pic.twitter.com/NoFbvwpxQJ
​— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) February 2, 2018