Despite being happy with their convincing 7-0 victory over Aruba on Saturday night, the Canadian men's national team's attention quickly turns to a big match against Suriname on Tuesday. After the important result, head coach John Herdman and midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye, who was named man-of-the-match, spoke to the media.
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Saturday's win, and building momentum​

The win was "job done" according to Herdman, speaking to reporters after the match. There seems to be a confident, but cautious, mindset in this Canada camp. "We knew Aruba would be a tougher test than the Cayman Islands -- they're more athletic, better players," said Herdman. "At the same time, the conditions were tough here for the lads. You can't see it on TV, but it was hot. "They pushed through and I don't think they took their foot off the pedal -- they kept knocking on the door." Canada were always favourites in this one, which while potentially a confidence booster, can also lead to complacency, so Canada had to still be at their best. "All of these games pose a different mental challenge," said Mark-Anthony Kaye. "Maybe on the team sheet they don't have the same players as us, but they're always going to fight, Concacaf is a challenge. "You just have to go into the game with the right mentality and set the tone from the beginning." It ended up being a one-sided affair, with Aruba failing to record a single shot, and Canada leading the way with 65% possession. It was an impressive win from Canada, who remain atop Group B of Concacaf World Cup Qualifying after three matches. "We got a clean sheet, three points, and are now able to go into the next game with some momentum," Kaye added. The LAFC midfielder assisted Lucas Cavallini's opener, with a strong cross that found Cavallini's head in the box. "The play worked out well, where the ball went out wide to Junior," Kaye recalled. "The fullback stepped out, and gave me the ability to run the channel. "I realized I had time to look up, so I took a touch and tried to put it in a good area, knowing that Cava is going to be in the box, trying to pick up chances. It was a well-worked play and I'm glad my right foot was actually able to find someone," he joked. "I'm happy we capped it off with a goal, it gives us motivation to keep finding spaces like that."

Tajon Buchanan's debut and selection dilemma ahead of Suriname game​

Herdman handed out a pair of debuts on Saturday night. While goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair didn't have a lot to do, the Canada boss was very impressed with right-back Tajon Buchanan. "He had a really strong performance tonight," Herdman said of the New England Revolution player, who can also play in attack and has attracted interest from European clubs in recent months. "Once he let go of the nerves, you're really seeing what this kid can do. "His tactical acumen -- when to join, how to join, how to attack that inside channel, that outside channel -- he's got a really good brain for this game." Several Canadian players put up strong performances on Saturday, leaving Herdman with a selection dilemma ahead of the Suriname match. Several key players -- including the attacking trio of Alphonso Davies, Jonathan David and Cyle Larin -- had their minutes limited with an eye to Tuesday's contest. Holding his cards close to his chest, Herdman declined to get into specifics about who exactly could be in the starting lineup, however. He made the decision to bring the big guns -- Davies, David and Larin among them -- off the bench as the match wound down, to get them some minutes ahead of a probable start on Tuesday. "Tonight was about getting them into match condition," he said, while also admitting that he was worried about potential injury risks. "They're our top players, they don't want to miss games, but I was nervous, that's for sure, that something might happen. "At the same time, I want the fans to experience those players, you can see their quality. It's lovely to watch."

ZBG "showed well," and "brilliant" extended squad​

Despite not being picked in the initial squad for this camp, Zachary Brault-Guillard was named to an extended squad, originally thought by many to just take part in training matches and provide competition for those in the match squad. It was later revealed, however, that players in the extended squad are available for selection during this June international window. Herdman seemed to be pretty happy that Brault-Guillard was available in the end. The CF Montreal right back scored an impressive goal, his first for the national team. "He was terrific yesterday in our intrasquad game," Herdman said of Brault-Guillard. "He's been in really good form. We were a little bit concerned around his injury and whether he could manage what was ahead of him, but he showed well tonight. "He got a bit of luck with Junior (Hoilett) going off injured, but I think he performed well. [He scored] a highlight reel goal, the bench went absolutely nuts." Herdman had a lot of praise for the extended squad as a whole, and praised their efforts in training this week. "The extended squad were brilliant," he said. "We have Luke Singh and Ayo Akinola, they're still new, but they'll help us on [Sunday] morning -- they'll be on the training field to create that 11v11 condition for the group we've got in mind to start the Suriname game."

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