[Frank Cunha]

FOUR IMPACT PLAYERS WITH CANADA


VANCOUVER, August 17, 2004 — The Can-Am Cup final has been cancelled, but four Montreal Impact players will nonetheless be in uniform, Wednesday night, as Canada will face Guatemala in a World Cup qualifying match. The game, to be played at Burnaby’s Swangard Stadium, just outside Vancouver, will kick off at 10 pm, eastern time, and will be broadcast on Sportsnet.

Canadian coach Frank Yallop will have Montreal captain Mauro Biello to call upon, as well as defenders Gabriel Gervais and Nevio Pizzolitto, and goalkeeper Greg Sutton. This is the first time in Impact history so many players from the Montreal team have been called up for a game of this level.

Last month, Biello, Gervais, Pizzolitto and Sutton also helped Canada come up with a 1-1 tie against Scottish club Hearts and a 1-0 win against English team Millwall in international friendlies.

"It’s always an honour — it’s every player’s dream to represent his country," said Biello, who was called up following a calf injury suffered by Tomasz Radzinski, Saturday.

The 32-year-old midfielder, who had not played for Canada since the year 2000 before this season, says he likes the philosophy adopted by Yallop, a former national team player who is into his first World Cup cycle as the squad’s head coach.

"With him (Yallop), it’s simple," said Biello. "If you’re able to perform, you’ll get a chance. He looks at all the players and keeps his options open. There are a lot of good players in the A-League, a lot of players who have played well enough to get a chance to play for Canada. Now, those players are getting that chance."

"The players have confidence in their abilities and their talent because the coach shows confidence in them," pointed out Gervais.

Canada will be playing the first of six games in the semi-final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. The Canadian team is in group B along with Guatemala, Costa Rica and Honduras. The top two teams at the end of the round-robin tournament will earn a spot in the final qualifying round.

"It’s very feasible, I don’t think we’re out of our league in this round," said Gervais. "For sure, the level is higher, so the mental preparation is greater, but we’re confident."

Three teams from the CONCACAF zone will earn a spot in the final phase of the World Cup, to be hosted by Germany in 2006. A fourth team could join them if it beats a team for Asia in a wild-card playoff.

Biello, Gervais, Pizzolitto and Sutton will travel back to Montreal after the game, and will join their Impact teammates in time for this Sunday’s game, August 22, against the Atlanta Silverbacks, to be played at Sherbrooke University Stadium (4 pm, CJAD, CKAC).

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SOURCE:
bcomm

INFO:
Stéphane Banfi
514-328-3668 (ext. 27)