Young Canadian side beats Turkey at prestigious Toulon soccer tournament
VITROLLES, France — Noah Verhoeven’s 80th-minute goal gave Canada a 1-0 victory over Turkey on Thursday at the Festival International Espoirs in France.
Canada, making its debut at the prestigious youth soccer event, fielded an under-21 side Thursday while Turkey used an under-20 side.
The young Canadians tied Portugal in their opening match. They play Japan on Sunday.
“We wanted to come here and get some results, but we wanted to also gain experience for the players,” said Mauro Biello, who is coaching the Canadian team along with senior men’s coach John Herdman. “This is the first time the players are together, so we wanted to establish a culture and an identity with them. Credit to the players, they are reacting to that and they are fighting out there for the results. This is very important for us.”