Canada captain Alphonso Davies is set to be sidelined for ‘several months’ after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during the Concacaf Nations League third place match win against USA.
The Bayern Munich star, playing his 58th match for Canada, came off the pitch after just 11 minutes when he fell awkwardly while challenging for the ball in the Canadian penalty box.
An ACL injury is considered to be one of the worst injuries an athlete can suffer. And with the 2026 Men’s FIFA World Cup just 15 months away, the consequences of Davies’s injury threatens to derail any momentum the Canadian team would have hoped to build by then.
Davies’s agent targets Canada Soccer, coach Marsch
While Canadians across the globe were still trying to come to terms with this news, one man, however, did not shy away from making his frustrations clear about the whole situation.
Nedal Huoseh, Davies’s agent since the Canadian was a 15-year-old upcoming starlet in Edmonton, slammed the Canadian Soccer Association for its mismanagement of players.
Speaking to OneSoccer, Huoseh said, “I am very disappointed. Alphonso was not 100 per cent after the Mexico game and it was planned that he was not going to start against the USA. On Saturday night the expectation was he would not be in the XI.”
Huoseh also took a dig at the Men’s National Team head coach Jesse Marsch.
“As a captain I feel he [Davies] was pressured to start the game by the coach [Jesse Marsch]. 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, in my opinion.”
Coach Marsch, had stated Monday after Canada’s win over USA, that Davies had been ‘nursing a little bit of an injury’ and had undergone a fitness test before the match.
The American, who was shown a straight red card during the match by Mexican referee Katia Garcia for vociferously protesting a denied penalty call, had also mentioned that Davies would probably not have started had Toronto FC fullback Richie Laryea been fit.
Canada Soccer fights back, terms comment ‘untrue’
Canada Soccer, meanwhile, was quick to refute Huoseh’s comment. In a statement given online, the organization’s chief communications and content officer Paulo Senra said:
“We want to express our full support for men’s national team captain, Alphonso Davies, as he recovers from this unfortunate injury. 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 wellbeing. Anything suggesting otherwise is untrue.”
Update: Since this story was published, Alphonso Davies’ agent Nedal Huoseh made a statement on X saying he’d had “positive and productive” communications with Canada coach Jesse Marsch and that they discussed being “aligned and working together.”
What’s next for Davies and Canada Soccer
Davies’s club Bayern Munich, on its official website, put out a statement that mentioned the left-back will undergo surgery and will be away from action for ‘several months’.
Board member Max Eberl said, “Unfortunately, there’s always the risk of players returning from international breaks with injuries – this time we’ve been hit particularly hard. The absence of Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano weighs heavily on FC Bayern. Phonzy will get all the support he needs on his road to recovery.”
The Canadian Men’s Team, meanwhile, will next be in action later this year when they compete at the Canadian Shield tournament – a four country exhibition competition that will be held at Toronto’s BMO Field, one of the 2026 FIFA World Cup venues.
The team faces Ukraine on June 7 and Côte D’Ivoire on June 10.
