ANALYSIS – With so many injuries, the 2026 CANMNT March roster is missing some big names for March camp. This includes captain, Alphonso Davies and vice-captain, Stephen Eustáquio.
2026 CANMNT March: A Roster with Performance Being Evaluated
Jonathan David Is Highlighted in the 27-Man Roster
In what is a bigger roster than usual, there are still some familiar faces. This includes Jonathan David, a forward for Juventus FC. He has scored seven goals in 39 appearances across all competitions.
With the club, David is struggling, which might result in him moving to another club. An indication of this is his starting role being taken over recently by Dusan Vlahovic, according to Football Media.
Even with David struggling with Juventus, he is still the team’s all-time leading scorer. He is the number one striker for the CANMNT right now.
Other notable players on the roster include the second all-time goal scorer of the national team, Cyle Larin, as well as Ali Ahmed (wide midfielder or winger, Norwich City), Moïse Bombito (centre-back for Olympique Gymnaste Club de Nice), Tajon Buchanan (full-back winger for Villarreal CF), and Derek Cornelius (centre-back for the Rangers Football Club, on loan from Olympique de Marseille).
People might question Larin’s recent struggles scoring for Canada, but the forward and left-winger’s move to Southampton Football Club has helped him regain his scoring touch. Only time will tell if this also translates into the international game.
Jesse Marsch, the CANMNT head coach, was full of praise for Ali Ahmed, as he said this about him, according to Anthony Lopopolo of the Canadian Soccer Daily:
“When we’re pressing, it’s like having an extra player on the pitch. Really,” Marsch said of his rising pupil in the lead-up to Thursday’s friendly against Ecuador at BMO Field. “He can cover ground. He’s intelligent in his position. He’s aggressive when he goes after things. He’s adapted and learned exactly what we need out of him in that position. And because of that, he’s been an incredible addition and an incredible boost to everything we do.”
Ahmed has now become a regular with the national team. Expect the former Vancouver Whitecaps FC midfielder or winger to continue to have an impact with the national team. This included getting scoring chances against Suriname on the road, as well as Ahmed’s world-class games against Panama, Suriname, and the U.S.
READ MORE: Nathan Saliba: A Promising CANMNT Midfielder
Notable Players on the Roster
There were a few notable players on the roster. One that was expected is Tani Oluwaseyi, who currently plays for Villarreal CF. He scored his first-ever goal for the national team against the U.S. in the Concacaf Nations League.
One surprising player on the roster is Owen Goodman, a goalkeeper for Crystal Palace, who is currently on loan to Barnsley. It is unlikely he will get any playing experience with Dayne St. Clair and Maxime Crépeau also on the roster. However, it will be a good experience for him to see what a national team environment is like.
The one that people are excited about is Plymouth Argyle F.C. forward, Aribim Pepple. He could get playing time, as there is a huge battle for the forward position after J. David. He has played very well for Plymouth, scoring 12 goals in 28 games. This is what Marsch said about Pepple, according to Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. (Source: OneSoccer YouTube Account on March 18, 2026):
“Listen, it’s great for the lad, he’s one of those that still keeps in touch, he’s humble, he’s hungry, and that’s the thing with strikers he just knows how to score goals it doesn’t matter whether it was the youth level the semi-pro level pro level with us going over to England, a goal scorer.”
Wheeldon Jr. also talked about Pepple as a player who does not get easily discouraged. If he missed a scoring chance, he would come and try to score as if nothing had happened. He is a player Canada should look at as it looks to add to their scoring depth.
Injuries to the CANMNT
The number of injuries Canada has suffered in the few months before the World Cup begins in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico has forced them to be creative. This is what Marsch said (Source: Waking the Red staff for the Waking the Red website):
“Originally, we were planning on kind of bringing in the core group of all of our players and have this be sort of like the first step of the preparation for the summer,” Marsch said to begin his Zoom call with reporters on Thursday afternoon before taking questions. “But then the injuries, the recovery and return to play all kinds of started to add up to mean that not that many guys were going to be available to train or to play. So, we then transferred it more to a performance camp.”
Expect this camp to be seen as more of an evaluation of players like Aribim Pepple and Marcelo Flores (an attacking midfielder and winger for Tigres UANL).
Eustáquio, a Porto midfielder who currently plays on loan to Los Angeles FC, has suffered a setback with an injury and will not be playing in the March window for Canada. He is one of many players who are noticeably missing from the roster.
Other players also missing include FC Bayern Munich player (left-back, winger, wing-back) Davies, and Royale Union Saint-Gilloise striker Promise David. Unfortunately, there is a very realistic chance that
P. David may not be able to play at all for the national team in the FIFA World Cup, as Sportsnet Staff reports that he could be out for several months because of a hip injury.
Even Alistair Johnston from Celtic FC and Moïse Bombito from OGC Nice, who are on the roster, will only be there as training players, as they also return from injury, according to Canada Soccer for the SIRC Website.
Marsch also said that for all the players injured, to do whatever it takes to be healthy 100% for the FIFA World Cup, which takes place in the summer, according to OneSoccer.
Games Coming Up For The CANMNT
READ MORE: Doneil Henry: The Hard-Nosed CANMNT Centre-Back
The CANMNT has two games coming up in March at BMO Field. The first one will take place at 1:00 pm ET against Iceland on March 28, and the other game against Tunisia on March 31 at 7:30 pm ET.
It is expected that both games will be broadcast live on OneSoccer. It is unclear if these games, though, will be televised nationally/regionally on TSN/RDS as of right now.
Photo Credit: CANMNT X Account on September 9, 2025, of Jonathan David.
