Davies good as Gold in opener
Whitecaps’ teen prodigy notches pair of goals to get Canada off to winning start
Teenager Alphonso Davies made quite the impression on his Canadian teammates on Friday.
The 16-year-old scored twice as the Canadian men’s soccer team beat French Guiana 4-2 on Friday to begin competition at the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
“What do you want me to say? He’s 16 years old,” 37-year-old Canadian captain Patrice Bernier said of the Vancouver Whitecaps’ teen prodigy.
“It’s not easy because it’s only his first start ever for Canada and comes out and scores two goals.
“He’s got pace, he’s got ability and he’s very calm and mature for his age. He’s able to do things at his age that I wasn’t able to do at his age.”
Davies stole the show, scoring both of his goals in the second half and providing a glimpse at the talent Canada is hoping will get it back to relevance in international soccer. Dejan Jakovic and Scott Arfield also scored for Canada in the first half.
“When the game started going, I got more comfortable. I was a bit nervous and shaken up at the start, but I got my feet wet,” said Davies.
After Canada had gone up 3-0, Roy Contout and Sloan Privat scored two minutes apart with about 20 minutes remaining.
Jakovic was largely unaware that he had given Canada the lead when an Arfield free kick hit his rib cage and deflected into the goal in the 28th minute.
Arfield, however, knew exactly what he was doing when he picked up a loose ball that had deflected off a French Guiana player and put away a tidy finish from just outside the 18-yard box before the game’s half-way point.
Davies, who only recently acquired his Canadian citizenship and has impressed with the Whitecaps this season, was played in all alone in the 60th minute and showed a lot of poise to convert his breakaway.
Things got nervous about 10 minutes later when, suddenly, the heavens opened and under pounding rain it became a one-goal game.
First, Contout headed in a corner kick and then Privat scored from close range in the game’s 71st minute.
“It was good enough for three points and, at the end of the day, that’s what matters,” said head coach Octavio Zambrano.
“It didn’t really quite happen the way we wanted, but I saw glimpses of what I want from this team.”
Canada’s nerves were settled with five minutes remaining when Anthony Jackson-Hamel of the Montreal Impact found Davies open on the left side.
Davies had the time and showed plenty of maturity to pick his spot and score with a low shot.
Canada travels to Houston to play Costa Rica on Tuesday. The Canadians finish the group stage next Friday against Honduras.
U.S. HELD TO DRAW: Dom Dwyer scored for the second straight game but Miguel Camarago’s goal gave Panama a 1-1 tie Saturday against the United States, the first time the Americans failed to win their opener in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The U.S. had won its previous 13 Gold Cup openers and dropped to 30-1-4 in Gold Cup group-stage play, with the lone loss against Los Canaleros in 2011.
The last four matches between the nations have ended in 1-1 ties.