DENVER – With his team already severely depleted in attack, interim head coach Colin Miller said forward Marcus Haber was “50/50” for Sunday’s crucial game for Canada against Panama.
In order for Canada to have any chance of advancing they’ll have to find a way to do what has so far been impossible thus far in the tournament: score a goal.
If Haber’s unable to play due to the heel injury he suffered on Thursday, that likely means a return for Tosaint Ricketts, who started on the wing in Canada’s opening game 1-0 loss to Martinique. He then came off the bench on Thursday in their 2-0 loss to Mexico.
“Just with the history, we’ve been having troubles getting that one chance,” said Haber, who plays in Norway in Sandnes Ulf and is yet to score this season for them. “I think once we start putting that one chance that we get in the game, because we usually get one, I think things will start to look different.”
The inability to score goals has historically been an issue with Canada but fate has hardly smiled on a Canadian team that has seen Randy Edwini-Bonsu go down with a knee injury and Simeon Jackson leave to join up with new club Eintracht Braunschweig in Germany.
If Ricketts does come in up top for Canada, it would be an unfortunate end of the tournament for Haber, who’s done a decent job leading the Canadian line. He’s used his height well to get some scoring chances and nearly had a goal in the first half against Mexico when his header off a Kyle Bekker free kick was stopped on the line.
Haber didn’t train with the team in Saturday at Sports Authority Field but Miller is holding out hope that the big man will be good enough to go.
“We’re hopeful that he may be available. He would be a big loss for sure because I think he’s played very well for us in the tournament so far,” said Miller, whose tenure as interim head coach comes to an end with this tournament. “We just can’t pull a rabbit out of a hat here. We have to have a belief and commit more players forward that desperately want to score goals.”
