To really appreciate just where the Canadian men’s national team is with about 20 months to go before Vancouver and Toronto host World Cup matches in the summer of 2026, let’s head back to 2019.
Canada had just crashed out of the Gold Cup to Haiti and then-head coach John Herdman reflected: “I’ve got a back four that doesn’t get regular minutes, that are young, and haven’t really made their mark on the international, or even national domestic, stages yet.”
The back four at that time were Alphonso Davies, Derek Cornelius, Doneil Henry and Marcus Godinho. You understand what Herdman was saying though, right? He would double-down on this on several occasions during his tenure as manager. Herdman knew that for Canada to progress and grow in Concacaf and on the world scene, more of his players had to be playing Tier 1 football.
Fast forward to the Jesse Marsch era in Canada, and let’s revisit the that back four: Davies has matured into arguably the top left-back in world football at Bayern Munich; Cornelius, having cut his teeth in European football, burst onto the scene under Marsch, engineering a move to Marseille; Henry would promise so much, but was always an injury away from finding his groove; and Godinho? Yes, I also had to look him up. Currently, he is recovering from an ACL injury in the Polish top division with Korona Kielce.
Henry has been replaced by Moïse Bombito in Canada’s starting XI, currently bossing the Nice backline in France. Godinho’s replacement has been Alistair Johnston, a full-back who took the captain’s armband for his club team in the final 15 minutes on Saturday as Celtic smashed St. Johnstone 6-0 in the Scottish Premier League.
As we begin the build-up to World Cup 2026, the majority of Canada’s top footballers are finally now plying their trade in top European Leagues. Three of them will actually be playing in the Champions League this week, no less.
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And not only are they playing in Tier 1 or Tier 2 leagues, but their clubs have started the season extremely well.
Johnston’s Celtic is perfect after six matches to top the table in Scotland. Davies and Bayern have four wins from their first five in Germany. Despite a shock loss to Strasbourg on Sunday, Cornelius and compatriot Ismaël Koné sit in third place in Ligue 1 with Marseille. Staying in France, Bombito and Nice are in the top half of the table. Over in Spain, Cyle Larin scored a goal with a magical touch on Friday as his Mallorca side sit fifth. And Stephen Eustaquio’s FC Porto are in second place in Portugal.
The habitat for top professional Canadian footballers is constantly improving. Major League Soccer may not be considered Tier 1, but it is making a strong case for Tier 2, and along with their compatriots already making waves in Europe, some of our nation’s top MLS-based players are also getting the attention of clubs overseas.
Ali Ahmed in Vancouver is expected to move abroad at some point, and with Stephen Afrifa at Kansas City and Jacen Russell-Rowe in Columbus both scoring this weekend amidst strong seasons in North America, expect speculation to continue bubbling around Les Rouges internationals.
All positive signs for the Canadian men’s national team as the countdown to World Cup 2026 continues.
