BUCHANAN PROVING TO BE AMONG TOP PLAYERS ON EARTH
Kadeisha Buchanan has gone from the best young player at a FIFA Women’s World Cup to one of the best defenders in the world in less than four years.
There is a reason Canada has conceded just one goal in eight matches leading into the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, with Buchanan anchoring the heart of its back line.
Buchanan, 23, is going into this tournament a better and more experienced player than the breakout star she was in Canada four years ago. Canada opens the tournament on June 10 against Cameroon.
“For sure, I feel different than I did four years ago, being a more mature soccer player,” Buchanan said in the lobby of the team hotel Wednesday. “The first World Cup I was young, I didn’t know what to expect, it was my first big tournament with the senior team. So I would say I was more nervous and I was kind of taking more of a back seat role for my team.
“At this World Cup, I feel more like a leader, a driver. It’s just a different experience going in, I feel a lot better, a lot stronger than I felt four years ago. I think my preparation and playing for Olympique Lyonnais makes me feel like a better player as well.”
A Toronto product, Buchanan made her debut with the Canadian senior national team at 17. She has 88 international appearances with three goals.
Buchanan started for Canada as a 19-year-old at the 2015 World Cup and won the Best Young Player Award after the hosts were eliminated in the quarter-final by England. The award was first presented at the 2011 Women’s World Cup to the best player 21 and under.
“I was very proud to win the award, but I definitely didn’t know about the award before I was up for it,” Buchanan said. “That kind of just happened on its own, but however it happened, I was just thankful to win the award. I just felt like it showed how good of a World Cup I had and it was just a reward for that.”
This time, Buchanan is more focused on team achievements rather than individual success. She is trying to help Canada become the best international team in the world and she is already playing for the best club team on the planet.
Olympique Lyonnais has dominated women’s club soccer unlike any other team in history. They have won the French Division 1 title 13-consecutive times and recently destroyed FC Barcelona in the UEFA Women’s Champions League Final to win their fourth straight European championship and sixth overall. Olympique Lyonnais have lost just two league games in the last nine years.
“Playing for Olympique Lyonnais is not easy, it’s a very tough team to be on and it’s a very tough team to get into the starting lineup,” Buchanan said.
Buchanan joined the French powerhouse following her graduation from West Virginia University. She has been on the roster since 2017 and is signed through 2022.
Canada is hoping her club success translates internationally at the World Cup. Defence is the strength of the Canadian team with Buchanan playing alongside the likes of Ashley Lawrence, 23, Rebecca Quinn, 23, Shelina Zadorsky, 26, and Allysha Chapman, 30, with one of the best goalkeepers in the world in Stephanie Labbe, 32.
“I feel like this back line has been together for quite a while now,” Buchanan said. “It’s a strong backline that has been together for a good, solid four years. We’ve been working on dealing with the communication, the line shift, the up and back, just really solidifying all the little details that is very key for a defence. Working for four years together, the partnerships are really strong.”
The Canadian defenders are also incredibly talented. A big part of their success is their ability to win the ball. Rarely do any defenders get beat clean, and their ability to one-on-one mark is among the best of any team in the tournament.
With her speed and ability to read the play, rarely does anyone get behind Buchanan, and when they do, she has among the best closing capabilities of anyone in the world.