7 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleKwasi Gyamfi Asiedu
PA MediaWhen Canada hosts Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto, they will make national history by appearing at a consecutive World Cup.
This time, they come to the global stage as co-hosts with matches in two of the country’s biggest cities.
Canada is known as an ice hockey powerhouse, but it has a less prestigious history when it comes to world football’s top tournament.
The national team have never made it out of the group stage, have lost every single match since their first appearance in 1986, and have just two goals to their name in tournament history.
So in front of crowds in Toronto and Vancouver, Les Rouges (The Reds) are on a quest for glory on home soil. For many, the main goals for Canada at this tournament are modest – to win a game and qualify from Group B.
Stephen Hart, Canada’s former head coach, believes the current team has the capability to do so.
“The squad has the potential to get out of the group stage,” Hart tells the BBC. “Canada now has players that have experience not only in top leagues, but in what I consider the best football in the world, which is the [European] Champions League.”
The team includes a number of players for Europe’s big clubs, including Juventus, Porto, Bayern Munich and Marseille.
Getty ImagesCurrent head coach Jesse Marsch has put together a team that is emblematic of Canada’s rich diversity – forged by a nation that has long embraced multiculturalism.
On top of any results they manage to get on the pitch, the team’s performance at this World Cup could achieve something for the future of football in Canada, Hart says – especially if they aren’t eliminated in the group stage.
“I think it would be massive” in terms of local interest for the sport, says Hart, who is currently head coach for the Halifax Tides.
Captain Alphonso Davies is widely-considered the nation’s best ever player, and it’s fitting that he is the man who delivered Canada’s first World Cup goal.
That came by way of a header against Croatia at the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
Born to Liberian parents in a refugee camp in Ghana, Davies came to Canada aged just five.
He has risen from the grassroots of Canadian youth football to multiple titles at club level with Bayern Munich, where, in 2020, he became the first Canadian player to win the Champions League.
Davies has scored 15 international goals for Canada – an incredible feat for a player who is officially a defender.
Canada are aiming to get their first ever points at a World Cup, and are dreaming about reaching the knockout stage – and it’s difficult to see how they achieve that without Davies.
But that raises questions for the team to contend with. Davies is still recovering from a hamstring injury he suffered weeks ago, and looks unlikely to feature in Friday’s opening match.
Toronto Star via Getty ImagesHart says Canada have options to temporarily fill in for their captain – but Davies, 25, is in a class of his own.
“Alphonso brings a certain level of inspiration to the team,” he says. “Fonzi brings something completely different because he can play in the full back position, you could push him further forward. He is a very dynamic player, dribbling-wise, and with creative passing.”
Hart says the team has other key players that can power them out of the group stages.
Soccrates via Getty Images- Jonathan David: The forward is Canada’s all-time goal scorer with 39 goals to his name. He comes to the World Cup after a transitional first season with Juventus, where he scored eight goals. He will have eyes set on a World Cup goal on home soil
- Tajon Buchanan: Another possible source of dynamic play comes from the 27-year-old midfielder, who plays for the Spanish club Villarreal. There, he scored seven goals last season
- Richie Laryea: The veteran is part of a defensive line who’ll be aiming to keep out goals. At 31, the Toronto FC man brings some much-needed experience
“These are all players that, you know, on their day are very difficult [for the opposition] to deal with,” Hart says.
There are injury concerns for other key players, including defenders Moise Bombito and Ali Ahmed. Canada have until 24 hours before kick-off to make last-minute changes to their squad.
Ex-Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch, 52, the first American to manage Canada, took over ahead of the 2024 Copa America and guided the team to fourth.
He was team USA’s assistant coach at South Africa 2010, four months after retiring as a player.
Canada vs Bosnia and Herzegovina
- 15:00 EDT, 12 June, Toronto
Canada vs Qatar
- 18:00 EDT,18 June, Vancouver
Canada vs Switzerland
- 15:00 EDT, 24 June, Vancouver
Canada’s first match against Bosnia and Herzegovina – who knocked out four-time champions Italy in the qualifying stages – is a must-win fixture if they are to make it to the knockout stages, says Hart, the Canadian national team former head coach.
“I always think in that tournament, it’s imperative you win the first game,” he says. “Once you win the first game, it kind of puts you at a certain mental ease. You get a bit of confidence, you have now got one game under your belt, you have got three points, so you approach the other games with less anxiety.”
In their next match, Canada will face Qatar – hoping to avoid the same fate that their opponents suffered when they became in 2022 a rare example of a nation that failed to progress from the group stage.
“I think they are unpredictable but it’s certainly a team that Canada can play with, keep the mistakes down to a minimum, and get a result,” Hart says.
Switzerland are Canada’s toughest opposition in the group stage, and a draw would be a great result for the hosts.
Goalkeepers: Dayne St Clair (Inter Miami), Maxime Crepeau (Orlando City), Owen Goodman (Crystal Palace)
Defenders: Alistair Johnston (Celtic), Derek Cornelius (Marseille), Richie Laryea (Toronto), Niko Sigur (Hajduk Split), Joel Waterman (Chicago Fire), Luc de Fougerolles (Fulham), Moise Bombito (Nice), Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Alfie Jones (Middlesbrough)
Midfielders: Stephen Eustaquio (Porto), Ismael Kone (Sassuolo), Tajon Buchanan (Villarreal), Mathieu Choiniere (Los Angeles FC), Ali Ahmed (Norwich City), Nathan Saliba (Anderlecht), Liam Millar (Hull City), Jayden Nelson (Austin FC), Jacob Shaffelburg (Toronto), Jonathan Osorio (Toronto)
Forwards: Jonathan David (Juventus), Cyle Larin (Southampton), Tani Oluwaseyi (Villarreal), Promise David (Union SG)
Additional reporting by Chris Adams, BBC Sport
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