A morale-boosting weekend win over the United States at the CONCACAF Nations League has turned into a nightmare for Canada.
The first hit came from Bayern Munich, which announced Wednesday that Canada captain Alphonso Davies had torn his anterior cruciate ligament in Sunday's 2-1 win over the Americans in the third-place game at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. Then Davies' agent piled on, accusing Canada of pressuring the 24-year-old from Edmonton to start against the U.S. despite not being 100 per cent.
Davies exited the game in the 12th minute favouring his knee after seeming to fall awkwardly while challenging for the ball in the Canadian penalty box.
Davies was scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday.
The injury comes some 15 months before the start of the 2026 World Cup, which Canada is co-hosting. If all goes well, he should be back in time to lead the 31st-ranked Canadian men -- but months of hard work wait him in the interim.
"Alphonso was not 100 per cent after the Mexico game (last Thursday) and it was planned that he was not going to start against the U.S.A.," agent Nick Huoseh said in a statement provided to OneSoccer. "On Saturday night the expectation was he would not be in the (starting) 11. As a captain, I feel he was pressured to start the game by the coach. Alphonso is not the kind of guy to say no in those moments. He ended up playing and look what happened.
"Canada Soccer needs to do a better job managing these players."
Huoseh said Davies was "down and obviously very disappointed about this injury."
Paulo Senra, Canada Soccer's chief communications and content officer, disagreed with the agent's take.
"We want to express our full support for our men's national team captain, Alphonso Davies, as he recovers from this unfortunate injury," Senra said in a brief statement. "Phonzie’s strength and resilience matches his world-class talent, and we all look forward to fully supporting him during his recovery.
"Canada Soccer's coaches and experienced medical staff are true professionals and have always prioritized player safety and well-being. Anything suggesting otherwise is untrue."
Canada coach Jesse Marsch said Monday that the Bayern Munich star fullback was feeling "a little bit spooked because it was his knee and it moved in a certain way" when he went down early in the U.S. game.
Marsch said Davies had been "nursing a little bit of an injury' and had undergone a fitness test before the match.
Marsch also said if Richie Laryea had been available — the Toronto FC fullback/wingback has been sidelined by a hamstring injury --- he probably would have started Laryea at left back.
Davies was making his 58th appearance for Canada.
Bayern, on its official website, did not provide a specific timeline for Davies' return other than to say he would be unavailable for "several months" and would be sidelined "for a lengthy period" after undergoing surgery to repair his right knee.
Canada is next in action in early June at the Canadian Shield tournament, a four-country competition in Toronto. Davies was not expected to be part of the CONCACAF Gold Cup that follows later in June given Bayern's participation in the FIFA Club World Cup.
There was more bad news from Bayern with word that centre back Dayot Upamecano will be out for “several weeks” with a problem in his left knee following his return from playing both legs of France's quarterfinal win over Croatia in the UEFA Nations League.
Upamecano was diagnosed with loose bodies in his left knee, expected to sideline him for several weeks.
“In international breaks, there is unfortunately always a danger that players come back injured, and this time it has hit us especially hard,” Bayern's board member for sport Max Eberl said Wednesday. “The absences of Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano weigh heavily on FC Bayern.
"Phonzy will get all the support he needs on his road to recovery. We'll also be keeping a close eye on Upa in the coming weeks and expect him to be available again soon. We have a strong squad and will compensate for these absences. We'll now grow even closer together. The quality is there to continue pursuing our big goals."
The quality will be missing for Canada, however.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2025
Neil Davidson, The Associated Press
