Sophie Schmidt's injury looms large as Canada enters knockout stage

The good news is that Sophie Schmidt is expected to play in Canada's first World Cup knockout stage game Sunday in Vancouver against Switzerland. What remains to be seen is how effective she'll be playing through what head coach John Herdman categorized as considerable pain.

Schmidt injured her hip in Canada's 1-1 draw with the Netherlands on Monday after falling awkwardly late in the game and was hurting enough that she was subbed off in the 81st minute.

It's being termed as just a bone bruise but it's bothering her enough that she's been seen walking with the help of crutches. Herdman is optimistic that Schmidt will be able to have her usual impact, but there are questions though. How will the injury affect her ability to take set pieces? Schmidt has been Canada's primary free kick and corner kick taker. She's also tasked with driving play and creating chances for Christine Sinclair in front of goal. If Schmidt is slowed by her ailing hip, who can step up?

The ideal choice would be Diana Matheson, who has yet to feature at the tournament. However, Matherson picked up a mild quad strain and isn't sure to be available. This latest setback is another hurdle for Matheson to overcome after she tore her ACL in October 2014 and then broke her foot about a month before the tournament.

Matheson typically plays a more central midfield role than Schmidt and it would be a big ask of her considering how little she's played of late. But the team is desperately searching for offence and a slight tactical change might do them some good.

Canada has scored just once from open play in three games and their opponents are going to get more difficult to break down with each passing game. Herdman made four changes to his starting lineup against the Netherlands looking to find a spark with defender Carmelina Moscato, midfielders Kaylyn Kyle and Jessie Fleming, and striker Adriana Leon drawing in.

The positive the team can take from its middling performances is that they know they can play better.

Even with the lack of scoring Canada topped Group A with one wins and two draws and Schmidt remains a key contributor despite carrying a knock. She'll have a little extra motivation on her side Sunday as well. Schmidt hails from nearby Abbotsford, B.C. and wouldn't miss the opportunity to play at home for the world. And if Canada can pull off a win Sunday and then two more after that, she would have the dream occasion of playing for the World Cup at home.

"The tournament is just starting to begin now. These are the big games where big players step up and that's what we're hoping for Sophie Schmidt," said Herdman. "This is where you get a chance to sort of write your own name in football history when you play in these big matches."

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr