The 26
Predicting Canada's 26 player roster for the world Cup
With the final pre-selection friendly in the books - a forgettable 2-2 draw against Bahrain that featured a very experimental line-up - it’s now time for John Herdman to name his roster for the tournament.
Unlike our friends to the south, this line-up does not look like it’s going to cause much controversy. The biggest questions had to do with injury and today (combined with some footage out of Munich) have given us enough confidence to go ahead and start naming names.
With that in mind, here is how I see the 26 shaking out:
Keepers
1. Milan Borjan
2. Dayne St. Clair
3. James Pantemis
The injury to Maxime Crepeau made this a fairly straight forward pick. The question of who the back-up in Herdman’s mind was likely settled when Dayne St. Clair started the Bahrain game.
Defenders
1. Kamal Miller
2. Alistair Johnston
3. Richie Laryea
4. Steven Vitoria
5. Sam Aderkugbe
6. Derek Cornelius
7. Doneil Henry
8. Raheem Edwards
There is some injury questions about Henry, with him pulled from the line-up just before kick-off today. However, prior to that he was wearing the captain’s armband. Doneil Henry is going to Qatar. He is part of this group. There’s little point hashing out why here as most fans have long ago made up their mind on where they stand with Henry.
The other name I have here that might cause questions is Edwards. He would be the most surprising add to the roster and the only player I have going that didn’t play a role in qualifying. He adds some spark and energy as a potential late game sub and is another attack focused wingback, which are key to how Canada plays. That tipped the balance for me.
Midfielders
1. Samuel Piette
2. Jonathan Osorio
3. Mark-Anthony Kaye
4. Ismaël Koné
5. Stephen Eustáquio
6. Atiba Hutchinson
7. David Wotherspoon
It’s rare you can pinpoint the exact moment a young player clinched his World cup spot, but when Koné calmly put away his chance today he may as well have walked of the pitch and started packing. The kid is going to Qatar and he’s probably getting sold somewhere in Europe in January.
Atiba played this week, which is great news, but he was going regardless. Osorio was the bigger question and him going 90 minutes today was the best thing that happened.
Wotherspoon was the 26th player I added to the list. I think he’s a player that Herdman trusts, and he fits the group well. Those are significant factors at the bottom of the roster.
Forwards
1. Liam Millar
2. Alphonso Davies
3. Cyle Larin
4. Junior Hoilett
5. Jonathan David
6. Tajon Buchanan
7. Lucas Cavillini
8. Iké Ugbo
Cavillini is “one of the boys.” Sometimes form is overrated when it comes to selecting a national team. He’s going. Ugbo was a consistent pick over the last year and there’s room here for him.
Millar is likely the borderline player. As with Edwards, I think he offers a bit of a spark off the bench and is familiar with Herdman and his system.
Regardless, we find out for sure on Sunday.
13 days till Belgium…
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