Canada coach Jesse Marsch said after Friday's shock win over Venezuela that his team is relishing the chance to face world champions Argentina in the Copa America semifinals.
The quarterfinal game at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium ended 1-1 after 90 minutes, with Canada winning 4-3 on penalties.
Now, competing in their first-ever Copa America tournament, the team has a chance to reach the final if they can beat defending champion Argentina on Tuesday in New Jersey.
“We're playing the best team in the world in the semi-final so I'm really looking forward to it,” Marsh said after Friday's win. “We'll have to play our best against Argentina and maybe even that won't be enough,” he said.
But Marsh insisted the team wanted to “play the biggest game of their lives”.
Canada lost 0-2 to Argentina in their first group match.
Marsh, a former Leeds United manager, only took over with Canada in mid-May but his influence was clear in an energetic, hard-pressing performance against Venezuela.
“We were the better team and we deserved to win,” said Marcio, who pushed Venezuela “to the limit.” “We believe in ourselves more and more, our confidence is growing.”
Venezuela coach Fernando Batista said his team, who won all three of their group games, enjoyed a positive tournament despite the loss.
“I leave angry that we lost on penalties after not losing in the 90 minutes, but I'm proud of the players for their excellent performance in the Copa America,” he said.
“The team is becoming more and more unique. We need to reflect and focus on qualifying for the (World Cup). That is our main target and we will keep moving forward,” he said.
Venezuela is the only South American team that has never qualified for the World Cup, but they finished fourth in CONMEBOL qualifiers and are currently on track to qualify for the 2026 tournament, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Batista said he didn't underestimate Canada.
“I wasn't surprised by Canada's performance because they were in a very tough group and they finished ahead of Peru and Chile and played Argentina,” he said. “This is football and they lost on penalties.”
Critical/RSC
© Agence France-Presse
