Valour FC will be without star Pacifique Niyongabire tonight at Starlight Stadium for the Canadian Premier League game against league-leading Pacific FC. But it’s a good sign for the CPL that he is with the Burundi national team for the Africa Cup of Nations.
It says something for the five-year-old CPL that Niyongabire is among six players from the league currently away with their national teams during this international window. The others are Marcus Simmons of Vancouver FC and Jonathan Grant of York United with Guyana, Garven Metusala of Forge FC with Haiti and Malcolm Shaw of Atletico Ottawa and Andre Rampersad of HFX Wanderers with Trinidad and Tobago, all for the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup. That’s on top of two CPL alumni with sa国际传媒 for the Gold Cup — former Cavalry FC player Victor Loturi, now with Ross County in Scotland, and Dominick Zator out of Cavalry FC and York United, now with Korona Kielce in Poland. Six CPL alumni, including former PFC defender Lukas MacNaughton of Nashville SC in MLS, were named to the 53-player sa国际传媒 selection long list.
“It was always the goal for the CPL to be a stepping stone to the next level and also to bring in the internationals, and most importantly, develop players for our national team,” said Pacific FC head coach James Merriman.
“We’re starting to see that and we’re only in our fifth season. There’s more to come. There’s some young players in the league who will be there very soon. It’s exciting and very positive. We need to keep building that pathway.”
Niyongabire scored for Valour FC in the first meeting this season against PFC, a 1-1 draw May 30 at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg. The Manitoba club is coming off a key 2-0 victory last Friday over defending-champion Forge FC of Hamilton. Valour FC has two wins, two losses and six draws and a reputation as a tenacious group that doesn’t back down from anyone.
PFC is 6-1-3 in wins-losses-draws and unbeaten in seven games and five points clear atop the table. A factor will be PFC on only two days rest after Sunday’s 1-0 victory over York United at Starlight Stadium.
“Coming off two days turnaround can be difficult. We have to match the work rate and intensity that we know Valour has as a high energy team,” said Merriman.
“Most importantly, our mentality has to be right from the start of the match.”
Much of the Pacific FC season storyline centres on a mercurial offence. It has shown capabilities of explosiveness with two four-goal outbursts and a six-goal game. It has also squeezed out just enough just in time to record 1-0 victories on late goals in its last two games.
Overlooked sometimes is a backline led by six-foot-four and twice sa国际传媒-capped former Sporting Kansas City MLS prospect Amer Didic and Thomas Meilleur-Giguère, the former MLS CF Montreal prospect who had 12 appearances for sa国际传媒 U-20, including in the 2017 CONCACAF championship and was selected for the sa国际传媒 U-23 team for the CONCACAF Tokyo Olympics qualifying tournament.
“TMG and Amer are brilliant guys to play with,” said PFC goalkeeper Kieran Baskett, who has recorded back-to-back clean sheets.
Defence is a team effort, said Merriman.
“We have to give our team credit for how we are defending off the ball collectively,” said the bench boss.
“And, of course, to our defenders and the pride they are taking and defending in front of goal and putting their bodies on the line. Maybe some of the goals we have conceded have been poor and the result of individual errors but we haven’t really given up much. Have to give the defenders credit for keeping us solid defensively. We are able to rotate players and it doesn’t seem to affect us. They are in a good way and a good spirit and they take pride in it.”
The defensive highlight in Valour FC’s season has been the breakout play of six-foot-seven goalkeeper Rayane-Yuba Yesli, who leads the CPL in saves with 39 and clean sheets with four.
