VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Over 54,000 tickets have been sold for Friday's World Cup qualifying match between Canada and Mexico in BC Place and home team striker Tosaint Ricketts is confident his team can pull off an upset against El Tri.
"Training camp has been going very well, everyone is in good spirits," said Ricketts in Thursday's news conference. "I have full confidence in my teammates and that we'll go out tomorrow and get the job done."
The game is set to become the most attended event for any Canadian national team in all sports.
Canada sits on four points from two games in Group A of CONCACAF qualifying, which has them in second place behind Mexico. The team is desperate for points in the doubleheader against El Tri, with the return game in Mexico City next Tuesday.
And the sense of occasion and importance hasn't been lost on Ricketts.
"It's a dream," he said. "The program has come a long way, some of the guys here have been here through the ups and downs, the hard and times when there's been little support.
"Now we are getting all the support, it seems everyone is ready for it. I'm confident and so happy to be Canadian."
Ricketts is backing Spanish coach Benito Floro and believes in the work done on the training ground. He is focusing on what his team does on Friday, rather than the qualities of a strong Mexico side.
"We have the crowd behind us and honestly I'm too worried about [Mexico]," Ricketts said. "I'm more worried about what we're gong to do when we come out there, our system, our tactics."
Mexico could advance to the Hexagonal phase of CONCACAF qualifying with a victory over Canada, depending on the result of the El Salvador-Honduras game earlier on Friday.
Kickoff is set for 10 p.m. ET.