Soccer
Canada's starting goalkeeper for the World Cup revealed
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The Orlando City shotstopper was revealed as Canada's No. 1 on Thursday by head coach Jesse Marsch, a day before the team's final pre-World Cup friendly against Ireland in Montreal.
Crépeau had been embroiled in a battle for the starting job with Inter Miami's Dayne St. Clair, with the duo splitting goalkeeping duties for Canada for nearly two years. Crépeau and St. Clair had even split duties in the team's most recent match, each playing 45 minutes in a 2-0 victory over Uzbekistan in Edmonton earlier this week.
"This is the hardest decision I've had to make in my coaching career," Marsch told reporters at a press conference on Thursday.
"Both of these men, Dayne and Max, gave everything from the first day I came here, had performed at every moment that they were asked to play for the national team, have committed to each other, to support each other and push each other through the entire process, and I trust and believe in both of them 100 percent," he continued.
Crépeau had started Marsch's tenure with Canada as the No. 1, playing in all but the third-place match at the 2024 Copa America. After that, St. Clair began to push for the starting job and landed the role at the 2025 CONCACAF Nations League Finals and the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
However, Crépeau remained an option for Marsch and played in a number of matches in the lead-up to this summer, ultimately winning out this week.
"I told the team the decision was made based on the fact that, with Max's maturity and experience, that I think that it's exactly what we need in the goal," Marsch explained. "I think that security that we get with Max, along with his overall talents and intelligence, makes us a better team right now."
Crépeau made his international debut in 2016 and has 31 caps to his name. The 32-year-old missed out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar due to a broken leg suffered while playing for LAFC in the MLS Cup final that year, and he is set to make his World Cup debut on June 12 when the Canadians face Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto.
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