Gold Cup to play key role in Paris Olympic team selection, says Canada's Priestman

With the Paris Olympics less than eight months away, Canada coach Bev Priestman has roster decisions to make.

And she expects more than a few players to put up their hand at the inaugural CONCACAF W Gold Cup, which opens in February in the United States.

On Monday night, Priestman and the 10th-ranked Canadians were drawn with No. 43 Costa Rica, No. 49 Paraguay and either No. 83 Guatemala or No. 115 El Salvador in Group C in Houston.

"The Gold Cup's going to be critical in assessing the roster and trying to move towards what feels like an impossible task [in selecting the Olympic squad]. You'd like to think that some players will get some really good minutes to really put their best foot forward," Priestman said from Zurich on Tuesday.

"Now we're really narrowing in on 'OK, well anybody who comes into [camp] in 2024 has a real shot at making an Olympic games." she added. "I'm not sure there's many more players, in terms of new faces, that you'll see coming in. Now it will be which of the new faces that we brought in put their best foot forward to move towards the Olympics."

Priestman says the hope is, "without underselling the [initial] opposition that we have," to manage the group stage with more competitive matches awaiting in the knockout rounds.

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The Gold Cup also offers the test of tournament football, with tight turnarounds.

The Olympic roster is a "fluid" 22 players, Priestman said. It was 18 players with four alternates and then, during COVID, 22 players with four not dressing for games.

She said she is awaiting final word on whether all 22 will dress in Paris.

The roster for the Gold Cup is 23 with Priestman hoping to bring in a