Scotland 1, Canada 1 | International Friendly Match Recap

Franco Panizo

Canada got off to a dream start in their friendly against Scotland, and that combined with some compact defending paved the way for the CONCACAF side to grab a respectable result in Europe.

An understrength Canada played Scotland to a 1-1 road draw at Easter Road Stadium in Edinburgh on Wednesday night. The Canadians initially took the lead in the 11th minute through a strike from Fraser Aird, but they conceded an equalizer later in the first half to Steven Naismith and had to get tough defensively to keep Scotland from finding the go-ahead goal.

Canada interim head coach Michael Findlay was on the sidelines for this game and not the recently-appointed Octavio Zambrano, but the latter will likely take away a good number of positives after seeing his players grind out a tie in Scotland.

Goals

11' – CAN – Fraser Aird
35' – SCO – Steven Naismith

Three Things

SPECIAL MOMENT: Aird's early tally will be one he remembers for the rest of his career. Not only did the midfielder's goal open his international account, but it came against a nation he previously represented. Though born in Canada, Aird suited up for Scotland on a pair of youth national teams in his earlier days and has played in the European nation for much of his professional career. The strike may not have ended up as the winner, but it will be a special one for Aird all the same.
DOGGED DEFENDING: Canada may have taken the early lead in Scotland, but the North American side had to defend for much of the 90 minutes. The Canadians were outpossessed by a 63.1-36.9 mark on Wednesday, but their ability to throw numbers behind the ball and stay compact allowed them to keep Scotland mostly at bay. A failure to properly clear the ball in the 35th minute allowed Steven Naismith to find an equalizer, but all in all Canada did a solid job defensively.
DANGER MEN: Two attacking Canadians that really made a case for themselves in the absence of so many regulars were Aird and Junior Hoilett. Aird not only scored the winner, but was also regularly involved in Canada's best attacks on the night. Hoilett, meanwhile, threatened the Scottish defenders with aggressive runs down the left flank.