France dominates in 1-0 win over Canadian women at Tournoi de France
Viviane Asseyi scores on free kick to win opening match
Viviane Asseyi scored on a marvellous free kick to give France a 1-0 win over Canada in the opening match Wednesday of the inaugural Tournoi de France in Calais.
The game was not as close as the score would indicate. The Canadian women were on the back foot throughout on a damp day at the Stade de L'Epopee.
"I think we have a lot going into the next couple of games and it's a good start from us and we can take a lot from this and move forward," Canadian goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan. "We need to make sure for the next game we show up and are really prepared and we possess more."
Canada plays three matches in seven days at the international tournament, including Saturday against the third-ranked Netherlands at 1 p.m. ET in Calais, followed by No. 9 Brazil on March 10.
WATCH | Host French blank Canada:
It was one-way traffic in the first half as fourth-ranked France kept eighth-ranked Canada in its own half. But despite the territorial advantage and wide edge in possession, the French were unable to generate many scoring chances.
That changed in the 55th minute when Asseyi, an attacking midfielder who plays her club football for Bordeaux, curled a free kick over the Canadian wall and past a diving Kailen Sheridan from some 25 yards out.
The Canadians can feel a little hard done by. The foul that prompted the set piece looked questionable, with Amel Majri going down easily from a Desiree Scott challenge.
Wednesday marked the return of veteran Diana Matheson to the Canada lineup. The attacking midfielder from Oakville, Ont., entered in the second half, her first game action with the national squad since last March after being sidelined by a toe injury that required surgery.
"It's been nice to get back on the field. I think there were a lot of good things," she said of Wednesday's contest. "We're disappointed we didn't get the result, but, we'll take a lot out of it for the next game,"
"I think we look at why there was as much time on the ball for France in that game and how we can tighten things up and then I think it's about quality on the ball for the next game."
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Canada eliminated from U-20 World Cup qualifying
Canada's hopes of qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup ended Wednesday in a 4-0 loss to the U.S. in quarter-final play at the CONCACAF Women's Under-20 Championship.
Mia Fishel scored twice and Brianna Pinto and Kennedy Wesley added singles for the U.S., who have outscored their opposition 34-0 in five games at the CONCACAF qualifier. Fishel, who plays for UCLA, upped her tournament total to 10 goals.
Canada (2-2-1) is done, falling two wins short of its goal — a semifinal win and FIFA-20 World Cup berth. They had hoped for more, but had little preparation time.
With files from CBC Sports