Canada men's coach Jesse Marsch has said he believes his adopted country is becoming "more European" as relations with the United States cool, and he has praised Prime Minister Mark Carney as the US president he has met who most resembles Barack Obama.
Speaking to the Guardian in Montreal, Marsch discussed Canada's political shift towards Europe, its multiethnic makeup, and the upcoming clash with his home nation, the US.
Canada's European Turn
"I've always thought Canada was a little bit more European than the US anyway. Right?" Marsch said. "But certainly now there's enough happening politically and economically that you would say, we're looking much more like that. There's talk of [Canada becoming an associate EU member] even actually happening. I like that aspect."
"There's a uniqueness to Canada in terms of how truly multiethnic this country has become. You can see that Canada is not just a North American country any more, you know? That bodes well for our sport and for the makeup of our team, the makeup of our fans."
On Mark Carney and the US Presidents
Marsch, who has met six US presidents in person, compared Carney favourably. "My impression is that first of all, he is a really smart guy, but a really normal guy," he said. "Sometimes you meet a US president, and you're overwhelmed, maybe by their presence, the position itself. I've met Clinton, George Bush Sr, Obama, Trump, Biden. Oh, and Carter. Six in person. Carney, compared to all of them, the closest would be Obama. A real air of intelligence, but a real air of being a regular guy."
He recounted a joke with Carney about the prime minister's support for Everton. "I made a joke with him that 'I heard you're an Everton fan?' and he goes, 'Yeah'. And I go, 'I'm sorry about that'. He replies: 'Why does everybody say that? Everybody has to pick their team and stick by them.' I said, 'I appreciate that you don't switch from Everton to Arsenal or Liverpool, like everybody else'. There's something so genuine [about] that. Could a president of the US ever be an Everton fan? No chance."
On the Balogun Affair and American Propaganda
Reflecting on the Folarin Balogun ruling, Marsch said: "Well, this is a deep conversation. We, as Americans, have been inundated with propaganda since we were young. We're the No 1 country in the world, we deserve everything, we dominate everything, No 1 in every aspect of life. This is what we've been told. So, when things happen and we don't feel like we're in control of it … we feel like we deserve to be treated differently because we're Americans. That is one of the things that infuriates the rest of the world about Americans. And Americans don't know that if they don't ever leave the country."
"So what I feel when the Balogun ruling happens is that would never happen in any other country in the world, and this is why everyone around the world hates America. That was proven to be so. The US had had a good World Cup, was doing well. All that switched in one moment. But do I think that that's about corruption and unfairness? The problem is, football is inundated with this kind of stuff."
On Manchester City and His Leeds Time
Marsch also called for severe punishment for Manchester City, who were found to have committed serious breaches of financial rules. "I think Man City should be punished severely. I think they should have to go down, and by the way, everyone knew about it. Everyone knew," he said, noting that Everton and Nottingham Forest were later deducted points in the same season Leeds United were relegated.
"That summer [2022], us and Man City were the only teams that said we made money. For us, we did make money, because we sold Raphinha, we sold Kalvin Phillips [to City]. We had a lot left over from what we bought. At the time, we weren't in a position financially to not save. Our ownership didn't have deep pockets. Whereas when Man City says this, I was literally like, 'Are you kidding me? Is this some kind of joke?'"
"When they said they got Erling Haaland for £52m, it's like: 'Yeah, OK, sure!' So, I knew there were inconsistencies in it, but what can you do? You just put your arms in the air and go, 'This is football'."
