Animation canceling, that makes sense. I tend to spam my attack button lol.
I agree that something should discourage getting right on top of your opponent, and contact damage works, but doesn't necessarily need to be the solution. For example, could be a quick kick that has high knockback and stun.
I still think making your character always facing your opponenet could help alleviate getting too close on accident, because you won't have to walk towards your opponent in order for your attack to be aimed in the correct direction.
Something else I thought of that could help is to make movement have acceleration. Doesnt have to be alot, just enough to not be 0 to 100 in one frame. Especially when your speed stat is higher, having a few frames where you're not at max speed could be helpful for micro adjusting your spacing.