Live Stream: Canada vs. Ghana Friendly

Canada vs. Ghana

7:30 PM Eastern

RFK Stadium Washington D.C, United States

CanadaSoccer.Com

YOU CAN WATCH THE GAME LIVE ON THE CANADIAN SOCCER WEBSITE HERE: http://canadasoccer.com/watch-canada-mnt-v-gha-p158716

The Headliner: Preparing for What's Ahead

In terms of international exposure, Canada have definitely picked a decent opponent for tonight's match. Ghana is ranked 25th in the world and are considered one of the top teams in African, something they have proven again and again of late. In this regard they will be a huge handful for a Canadian national team short-staffed by a number of factors.

The match may be a bit overshadowed by the fact that the Canadian U-23 team are playing a do or die game against the United States in Olympic qualification, also meaning players like Samuel Piette and Michael Petrasso were not available for selection. The MLS Playoffs have also meant Cyle Larin, Russell Teibert and Jonathan Osorio aren't with the team.

What the match is really about, however, is preparing for the next stage of World Cup qualifiers. This game will give the Canadian team a chance to look at who they have available as several players are making their debut for the national team.

It will also mean working on different things that they would like to implement in their upcoming games. In that sense they have picked an opponent who will definitely be as much of a challenge as anyone Canada will face in their next round of qualification.

Key to the Match: Coming Together

There are a lot of new faces in this Canadian lineup, especially in tonight's starting 11. While this is good news for the program it also means this match will be key as they try to gel going forward. How quickly they manage to do so will likely determine how well they do in this match.

There will be no shortage of talent available to this Canadian team. Junior Hoilett of QPR will be making his long-awaiting debut on the wing for the team and will certainly be the one to watch. Meanwhile, Lucas Cavallini of Fenix in Uruguay will be returning after a long national team absence.

Both of these players could do some damage against Ghana, who otherwise appear superior to the Canadian team in every way. This is especially true with the strong team that Ghana are bringing.

The Lineup:

Canada: Stamatopolous, De Jong, Hainault, Lefevre, Ouimette, Straith, Trafford, Froese, Ricketts, Hoilett, Haber

The backline sees the debut of Wandrille Lefevre of the Montreal Impact who just recently committed to the Canadian team after earning his Canadian citizenship. He will be joined by Canadian veterans Marcel De Jong, Andre Hainault and Karl Ouimette.

The midfield will see Adam Straith captain the Canadian squad for the first time in his career and otherwise be built of debutants. Charlie Trafford a 23-year-old who plays in Finland will make his debut in the centre of midfield alongside Kianze Froese, also making his debut from the Vancouver Whitecaps.

In attack Canada will debut Junior Hoilett on the left side, who they hope will be a dangerous weapon for them going forward. Balancing him on the right side is Tosaint Ricketts, who has been the hottest Canadian player of late. Up top is Crewe Alexandra striker Marcus Haber.