Welcome to Countdown Canada, The Athletic’s weekly look at the Canadian men’s national team leading into the World Cup.
With just 33 days before Canada’s World Cup opener on June 12 against Bosnia and Herzegovina, The Athletic will let you know what we are hearing about and seeing from Canadian players every Monday leading up to the World Cup itself.
This week, we’re unpacking more injuries for Canada and some strong performers making a case for inclusion in the team’s roster or World Cup starting lineup.
Davies racing to be fit for World Cup
Canada has been beset by injuries as of late. But none has led to concern this close to the tournament like Alphonso Davies’ hamstring injury in the second leg of the Champions League semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain.
Watching his performance again, the Bayern defender immediately slows down after a sprint late in the second half. It’s worth wondering if the sprint led to his injury and if Davies was pushing himself and his body after an array of injuries through 2025 and 2026.
Alphonso Davies suffered his injury during the Champions League semi-final defeat to Paris-Saint-Germain (Odd Andersen / AFP via Getty Images)
Bayern have labelled Davies’ absence as “several weeks” and it sounds like the path to full recovery for Davies is in the five-week range. While that sounds lengthy, it’s believed Davies’ injury is not as detrimental as originally feared.
Remember with injuries, timelines and expectations can change with a player’s recovery. But the likelihood that Davies is a full participant through all of Canada’s training camp before the World Cup remains low, as is the likelihood that Davies plays in Canada’s first friendly (against Uzbekistan) in his hometown of Edmonton on June 1.
For the World Cup itself? It certainly doesn’t sound like his entire World Cup is in jeopardy. However, expectations about how much he will play early on, especially against Bosnia and Herzegovina on June 12, should be adjusted. Canada benefits from having lengthy gaps between their games. Their final group stage game, which could determine their knockout round fate, is a full 12 days after their opener. That’s crucial recovery time for Davies and you can bet Canada’s staff will take full advantage of that time.
As always, you have to bet on Davies wanting and willing to perform: this is the biggest tournament of his life. Davies doesn’t take the responsibility of being Canada captain lightly.
Jones still on road to recovery
One injury that is leading to more concern, though? Alfie Jones.
It’s believed the Middlesbrough centre-back suffered a setback recently in his recovery from an ankle injury suffered in December.
Let’s be clear: no one is ruling Jones out for the World Cup right now. He will likely attend Canada’s training camp and be assessed in full by Canada’s staff on the ground.
Whether Jones is in Canada’s World Cup squad likely depends in some part how he responds to tests and training demands. Canada head coach Jesse Marsch and the staff want him in the squad, as they should. When he’s fit, Jones adds a level of dependability and physicality to Canada’s back line that they need. But Canada will have to determine his health and how much Canada can get out of Jones when it matters late in the group stage.
Knight-Lebel in the mix as injuries mount
Jones’ injury setback compounds concern at centre-back. Moise Bombito is not yet at full fitness after a broken leg. Derek Cornelius last played for Rangers in Scotland in November because of a combination of injury and not being named to recent squads. He is training with the team’s reserves, however. Luc de Fougerolles is playing for Dender in Belgium but is working his way back to full fitness. Ralph Priso’s hamstring strain will likely keep him out of the World Cup.
That’s led to Canada considering other options at centre-back, including Jamie Knight-Lebel. The 21-year-old recently completed a loan spell at League Two’s Swindon Town, where he started regularly.
Jamie Knight-Lebel played for Canada at the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup (Tim Warner/Getty Images)
“This season I’ve improved massively defensively, reading the game and defending one against one,” Knight-Lebel recently told The Athletic. “A lot of the games, our manager wanted me to be by myself on the halfway line of the striker and he wanted the whole team to attack. It was a great experience for me.”
Knight-Lebel said he has been given a personalized training plan from Canada’s staff for May. He is still very much being monitored by Canada’s coaching staff and could be looked upon as a possible depth addition, depending on Jones’ health.
“Jesse’s very detailed,” Knight-Lebel said of utilizing his experience through this season to crack Canada’s World Cup roster. “The camps I’ve been to, he’s been really clear on how he wants the back line really high. He calls it the ‘rest defence,’ which is obviously a familiar term now, but it’s where we position ourselves as defenders to prevent any counter-attacks. So it’s always it is in my mind: if I can do both and show in professional games that I can defend in that way.”
Laryea and Saliba on course
Other injuries that are worth keeping an eye on, but are not as concerning as Davies and Jones: Richie Laryea’s thigh injury and Nathan Saliba’s recent hip injury likely won’t jeopardize their time in Canada’s training camp.
Ali Ahmed could miss some time through Canada’s training camp due to his recent leg injury, but his World Cup isn’t in doubt.
Larin and Millar battle in play-offs
Two starts over the weekend for key Canadian players in what are often called the “richest games in football”: the EFL Championship playoffs to determine who earns promotion to the Premier League and benefits from the massive financial windfall that comes from it.
Cyle Larin went 60 minutes up top for Southampton against Middlesbrough in a 0-0 draw. The veteran Canadian forward remains in top form, having scored six goals in his last eight Championship appearances. A starting spot against Bosnia and Herzegovina is very much in play for Larin.
Cyle Larin has been in rich goalscoring form for Southampton (Warren Little/Getty Images)
Hull City winger Liam Millar logged 69 minutes in the other Championship semifinal against Millwall. Quietly, Millar is in the middle of a stellar run of form for his club, with a goal and two assists in his last five Championship appearances.
Millar believes playing in the Championship playoffs will help him come the World Cup.
“For me, I’ve taken all the experience that I’ve learned over my time of being in other semifinals and I try to be as calm as possible when I’m on the pitch,” Millar recently told The Athletic. “The more experience you have, the calmer you feel. It’s obviously good to experience these moments because when the World Cup comes around, it’s going to be the exact same. It’s going be high adrenaline. Experience alone just helps you with these moments.”
Millar has a big fan in Marsch. Millar’s strong recent form and his ability to execute Marsch’s tactical and pressing demands make him a possibility to start for Canada if both Davies and Ahmed are unavailable.
Osorio in fine form
Can we give some justified love to Jonathan Osorio for his performances this season on a Toronto FC team still finding its way? The captain and midfielder has looked consistent this season after publicly coming out at the end of last season and saying he needed to be better.
Let’s not forget that Osorio has a history of playing in advanced midfield role. Could Canada consider Osorio playing the uber-intelligent midfielder high up in a second-striker role should the need arise? His versatility is what makes Osorio a possibility for Canada. Osorio played higher up the pitch against Lionel Messi and Inter Miami on Saturday and sent a team-high 60 passes. Osorio completed 90.9 percent of those passes, suggesting he’s in fine form at the right time.
I asked TFC head coach Robin Fraser about Osorio after the game against Miami and Fraser practically cut off the question to sing his midfielder’s praises.
“He’s fantastic,” Fraser said. “I’ve known (Osorio) 10 years, I think over 10 years now and he was a really talented 23-year-old, I think when I met him, I think he was 22, 23, really talented, really just trying to establish himself as a pro. And to see that he’s still physically for me the same as he was, he hasn’t lost a step, he’s still quick, he’s still agile, but his brain is so much more developed in terms of football.”
That brain is among the many qualities that should propel Osorio to another World Cup.
“Back then, if you were a talented kid, you were the best one, you had the ball and you did your thing and that was it,” Fraser continued. “And he’s gone from being a super-talented kid to being a really, really mature player who makes good decisions on the field and hopefully he’s getting his just reward, which is another trip to a World Cup.”