The men’s World Cup draw in Washington D.C. was going well for Canada until Pot 4.

Instead of one of the weakest teams, Canada drew the winner of UEFA Playoff A, which will see favourite Italy, the 12 th -ranked team in the world, compete against Wales, Bosnia, and Northern Ireland in March.

Canada had already drawn 17 th -ranked Switzerland and 51 st -ranked Qatar, relatively favourable picks in a field of more formidable possibilities.

But the spectre of facing Italy — in Canada’s opening game in Toronto on June 12 no less — left head coach Jesse Marsch grim faced in the semidarkness of the Kennedy Center, with his arms folded tight across his chest.

He had started to recover by the time he spoke after. He wasn’t upset about the challenge, he said. He likes to prepare, and now

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