Soccer
Just how injured is Canada ahead of South Africa showdown?
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History has been made, and Canada will play in a World Cup knockout match for the first time, but something still feels off.
The Canadians headed into Wednesday's final group stage match needing only a draw against Switzerland in Vancouver to clinch the top spot in Group B. However, things didn't go according to plan, and Jesse Marsch's team fell 2-1 to the Swiss, dropping to second place in the group and saying goodbye to their home nation as they'll embark on the rest of their World Cup journey — however long that might last — in the United States.
Wednesday's game was always looked at as the toughest of Canada's three group stage matches, with the 19th-ranked Swiss proving a well-drilled obstacle that was ultimately too tough to navigate. Even so, the vibes ahead of that match were of a Canadian team hitting their stride following their lopsided victory over Qatar, giving an entire nation hope that they could get by Switzerland and book another match in the red cauldron that BC Place has become over the past few weeks.
Unfortunately, it wasn't in the cards for Canada, who will instead head to Los Angeles for a date on Sunday with surprising South Africa. Bafana Bafana shook off a terrible start to their World Cup campaign with back-to-back results that allowed them to sneak into the round of 32, setting up a Hollywood showdown with the co-hosts for a spot in the last 16.
It's a quick turnaround for both sides, with just three days between kick-offs, leaving little time for preparation. It also leaves little time for gamemanship, something that Marsch has been engaging with regarding the health of his captain, Alphonso Davies, throughout this tournament so far.
Things came to a head in the lead-up to the Switzerland match, when Marsch declared Davies fit and prepared to play a part in the group stage finale. Davies' stature within the world's game is such that opposing teams need to plan for his presence — even if he's on the field for 15 minutes, Davies' explosiveness and pedigree can turn a match on its head.
And so, Marsch led the public to believe Davies would play, and when the 25-year-old ultimately remained sidelined, it was revealed that his injury status was just a ruse.
"Alphonso wasn't ready yet, so I was using him a little bit as a decoy," Marsch told the media after the loss to Switzerland. "He will be ready for the next match."
Davies is recovering from a hamstring injury suffered in early May, but he hasn't played for Canada since March 2025, when he tore his ACL in a CONCACAF Nations League match. His latest ailment was said to require several weeks to heal, putting him roughly on track for Wednesday's match.
Instead, the Bayern Munich star remained glued to the bench, not even warming up with other potential substitutes, as it appeared that Davies was nowhere near ready for action.
Jesse Marsch demands improvement after Swiss defeat
Similarly, defender Moise Bombito has been working his way back from a broken leg and was iffy to even make Canada's World Cup squad. The OGC Nice centre-back had not played a competitive match in months before joining Canada's training camp, and his first appearance in 2026 was a woeful 30-minute start in a pre-World Cup friendly that did little to dispel fears that he was still well off the pace. Despite this, Bombito stayed with the team as the tournament started, with Marsch publicly praising the 26-year-old for his recovery.
Bombito even got 45 low-pressure minutes in Canada's second match against Qatar, entering the game with his team already up by three goals, indicating that the speedy defender was near full fitness. A healthy Bombito is a game-changer for Canada, as his speed and range allow the team to play the high-octane style that Marsch prefers, so his return in an actual World Cup game could only mean good things going forward.
That is, until he inexplicably also stayed on the bench against Switzerland. With the Swiss forwards bullying Canada's defence with their pace and power, Bombito would have been the perfect antidote, but instead, he watched on as his team struggled to deal with the physical and athletic threats presented to them.
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Then there's Stephen Eustaquio, the vice-captain and midfield general who usually plays 90 minutes of every game. Last week, he was held out of training under mysterious circumstances, with Marsch and the Canada staff offering little explanation for the 29-year-old's absence just days from the team's biggest game of the tournament so far.
Eustaquio returned to training the next day, but with media not allowed to watch anything but the first 15 minutes under FIFA regulations, there was no visible evidence that he was operating at 100 percent, with staff later calling his absence a "maintenance day."
Yet, on Wednesday, Eustaquio was left out of Canada's starting XI, leaving a massive hole in a midfield still trying to figure out how to operate without the silky services of Ismael Koné. The outcome was predictable, as the Swiss dominated a Canadian midfield missing both Koné and Eustaquio, and the damage was already done by the time the latter was introduced in the final half-hour.
When asked why he didn't start against the Swiss, Eustaquio was blunt. "If I could have gone [90 minutes], I would have," he said in his post-match remarks, opening up more questions than answers given the way he helped turn the game around after his introduction.
Just how injured is Eustaquio, and will he be able to recover adequately by Sunday to start for Canada? Did Bombito have a setback, and if not, why didn't he play against the Swiss? What is Davies' status and will he feature at all in this World Cup?
With so many key pieces not at 100 percent, the injury bug remains a hugely influential factor for the Canadians at the worst possible time.
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