Canada ready for Gold Cup clash with Guadeloupe

Canada will take part in a light training session on Friday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa ahead of Saturday’s match against Guadeloupe in CONCACAF Gold Cup Group C competition (18.00 local kick-off).
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​The match will be broadcast in Canada on Rogers Sportsnet One ( channel details) as well as streamed online at GoldCup.org. On-site twitter updates will also be available at CanadaSoccerEN. Pre and post-match video coverage is available at CanadaSoccerTV.
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​Both Canada and Guadeloupe lost their opening matches of the tournament in Detroit and will be looking to come away from Saturday’s contest with a much-needed result.
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​Canada fell 2-0 to the USA while 10-man Guadeloupe were defeated by Panama 3-2.
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​As a French protectorate, Guadeloupe is not eligible for FIFA competition but the island nation is recognized by CONCACAF and can thus take part in the Gold Cup.
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​“They are an organized team,” said Canada’s Head Coach Stephen Hart. “They’ve played together recently in a Caribbean competition. They look organized and we have to play better than we did in the opening game.”
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​The only previous match between the two sides ended in a 2-1 victory for Guadeloupe in the group stage of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
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​The heat in southern Florida is also expected to play a factor in tomorrow’s game with temperatures forecasted to peak above 32 degrees Celsius on Saturday.
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​“The heat will be a factor,” Hart said. “But we expect the players to do what they need to do and to do it efficiently.”
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​“Everybody is upbeat and looking forward to doing their best for Canada for tomorrow.”
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​Canada needs to finish as one of the top two sides in Group C; or as one of the two highest ranked third-place finishera in the competition to advance to the knockout stages.
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​Canada’s final match in Group C play is against Panama on 14 June in Kansas City, KS.
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