Canada lost its second straight game at the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, this time humbled 5-0 by defending champions Mexico, a team that has not lost in this event since 2009.

There was no way that Canada’s men’s under-20 team was going to qualify for a first World Cup in a decade in its first game, but, after a 1-0 loss to Honduras on Friday night, the drought looks set to continue.

It just wouldn't be a Canadian national-team roster announcement if we didn't focus more on who isn't on the team than who was on the list.

Before the first half of Sunday’s group-stage match between Canada and Japan at the U-20 Women’s World Cup was over, the FIFA international feed commentator had already resorted to coming up with consolatory terms for the team in red.

Two games in, and Canada has two losses and a goal differential of -7.

Spain had five goals. Canada had one shot on goal.

Really, it came down to Venezuela burying its chances, while the best Canadian attempts went off the woodwork.

“Shamit, and I’ve said this before, if there is a better young player in our league, I have yet to see it. I think he is so consistent and I think he’ll be a big part of the national-team program moving forward.”

We’ve seen this over and over. A young players come up through our system, and then our small-but-oh-so-loud Canadian soccer community gives the kid way too much praise, way too much hype. It’s understandable, we’re so desparate for a saviour, an instant solution to decades worth of soccer rot, that we latch on to 17-year-old after 17-year-old. The message boards fill up with dreams of big moves to big clubs. And whether your name is Aleman, Alderson or Teibert, the overreaction to some early career successes puts you on a path to meet expectations that can’t possibly be met.

The U-20 team qualified for the Women’s World Cup; but was youth really served by the decision to rest key players for the final game of the CONCACAF Championship?