Timnas Kanada Umumkan Skuad Piala Dunia 2026 Tanpa Coret Alphonso Davies

Pelatih Timnas Kanada Jesse Marsch resmi merilis daftar 26 pemain untuk putaran final Piala Dunia 2026 pada Sabtu, 30 Mei 2026, dengan tetap menyertakan bek bintang Alphonso Davies meskipun sang pemain sedang dibayangi cedera otot paha belakang.

Keputusan mempertahankan bek Bayern Munich tersebut diambil karena kontribusinya yang vital bagi tim tuan rumah, walaupun ia diprediksi absen pada pertandingan pembuka Grup B melawan Bosnia and Herzegovina di Toronto.

Selain Davies yang proses pemulihannya dipantau ketat, Marsch juga memanggil pilar utama lain seperti penyerang Jonathan David dan gelandang Stephen Eustaquio untuk mendongkrak performa Kanada yang membidik sejarah lolos dari fase grup.

Di luar urusan teknis tim, persiapan Kanada sebagai tuan rumah bersama Amerika Serikat dan Meksiko diwarnai tantangan ekonomi dengan perkiraan biaya penyelenggaraan mencapai 1 miliar dolar Kanada bagi pemerintah federal dan lokal.

Kota Toronto dan Vancouver dijadwalkan menggelar 13 pertandingan, di mana antusiasme warga mulai terlihat melalui geliat promosi di Nathan Phillips Square yang diharapkan mampu menggerakkan sektor pariwisata serta usaha kecil setempat.

Persiapan sejenis juga dilakukan oleh kontestan lain di Grup G, yakni timnas Mesir yang mengandalkan pemain senior seperti Mohamed Salah dan Mahmoud Hassan "Trezeguet" untuk meraih kemenangan pertama mereka dalam sejarah Piala Dunia.

"Yes, I think Alphonso will play in the World Cup," kata Marsch, seperti dikutip ESPN.

Pelatih berkebangsaan Amerika Serikat tersebut menjelaskan bahwa klub Bayern Munich sangat mendukung pemulihan Davies dengan memberikan protokol perawatan medis canggih sebelum sang pemain bergabung di Edmonton.

"No, I don't think he'll be ready on June 12. But we'll see," tambah Marsch.

Manajemen timnas Kanada akan melanjutkan tahap rehabilitasi fisik lanjutan bagi Davies agar sang pemain dapat segera mencapai kondisi kebugaran prima selama turnamen berlangsung.

"Bayern has given him a certain protocol that they can do in Germany, but can't do in North America," tambah Marsch.

Pihak klub sepakat bahwa tindakan terbaik bagi Davies adalah merampungkan perawatan awal di Jerman hingga tanggal 28 sebelum diberikan waktu istirahat singkat.

"That's one of the reasons why he stayed in Germany, because we thought they have high tech in terms of treatment that he can get, so we thought that was good. They've also been very supportive, and they want to see him play in the World Cup. I think they understand that supporting their players for both club and country is important," tambah Marsch.

Davies dijadwalkan tiba di Kanada pada tanggal 31 untuk langsung masuk ke dalam program pemulihan intensif bersama staf tim nasional.

"Alphonso will arrive in Edmonton on the 31st. So we spoke with Bayern and thought it was best for him to continue his initial recovery treatment until the 28th, then we give him a couple of days to rest, and then he'll join us on the 31st, and we'll continue his rehab from there, and try to get him physically in a good place to be a part of our team," tambah Marsch.

Di sisi lain, Presiden Sepak Bola Kanada Peter Augruso menekankan pentingnya turnamen ini sebagai wadah pemersatu masyarakat yang merayakan keberagaman tanpa memandang latar belakang asal-usul.

"The sport belongs to everyone. It doesn't ask where you are from, it just asks how you play, how you lead and how you bring people together," kata Presiden Sepak Bola Kanada, Peter Augruso.

Augruso menambahkan bahwa sepak bola telah menjadi bahasa universal yang dipraktikkan sehari-hari oleh masyarakat Kanada di berbagai fasilitas publik.

"It is a universal language, and in Canada, it is spoken every day in our schools, parks, community centers and stadiums from one end to the other," kata Augruso.

Pernyataan tersebut dipertegas oleh Augruso saat menghadiri Kongres FIFA di Vancouver, yang menyoroti multikulturalisme sebagai kekuatan utama negara Kanada.

"Our diversity doesn't weaken us. It's what defines us," kata Augruso pada Kongres FIFA baru-baru ini di Vancouver.

Menurutnya, Kanada berhasil membuktikan kepada dunia bahwa perbedaan latar belakang masyarakat merupakan sebuah potensi besar yang harus disyukuri.

"In a world that feels fractured, Canada is proof that diversity is not a challenge to be overcome, but a strength to be celebrated. Here, the world doesn't just visit the world, but lives, works, learns and thrives together," kata Augruso.

Mengenai atmosfer di kota penyelenggara, bek timnas Kanada Richie Laryea mengonfirmasi bahwa warga lokal sudah sangat antusias menyambut kehadiran turnamen akbar tersebut.

"When you go out for coffee or even in and around the hotel, people look excited," kata bek Richie Laryea, yang bermain untuk Kanada dan Toronto FC di Major League Soccer.

Laryea meyakini bahwa dampak besar dari penunjukan Toronto sebagai kota tuan rumah baru akan benar-benar disadari oleh warga saat laga perdana resmi dimulai.

"People are ready for the World Cup in Toronto. So I think for most people, they know how big of a moment this is for our city, but I think until the day comes and people see it, it'll probably really hit them," kata Laryea.

Sementara itu, warga lokal di wilayah Burnaby menyambut gembira kemacetan yang diprediksi terjadi demi melihat rangkaian pertandingan sepak bola dunia.

"I know a lot of people say traffic is going to be bad and everyone's lives are going to be disrupted for a month, but I am so excited for these games," kata Brent Stewart, yang baru saja bermain sepak bola di taman kawasan Burnaby bersama teman-temannya.

Stewart berharap atmosfer perayaan di kota Vancouver bisa menyamai momentum kemenangan besar tim hoki Kanada di masa lalu.

"Maybe Vancouver will party like when we won the hockey gold," kata Stewart.

Bagi pelatih Jesse Marsch, gelaran Piala Dunia 2026 di tanah kelahiran memiliki nilai historis yang setara dengan momentum Piala Dunia 1994 di Amerika Serikat.

"Without the 1994 World Cup, I wouldn't be here. I wouldn't have had the chance to be a professional after college. I wouldn't have had the chance to pursue a career as a professional coach," kata Marsch kelahiran Amerika yang memiliki karier panjang di MLS.

Marsch menegaskan pentingnya pemanfaatan momentum ini guna membuka jalan karier yang lebih luas bagi para pemain serta pelatih lokal di masa depan.

"And what we need to do is make sure we supply more opportunities like that for players and coaches so that in the future, we can continue to grow the profile of the sport in this country," kata Marsch.

Terkait komposisi tim Kanada yang diasuhnya, Marsch memuji kepribadian serta komitmen kerja keras para pemain dalam mewakili identitas negara.

"I say often that to me, these guys are the best resource and amazing examples of what it means to be Canadian," kata Marsch.

Ia optimis perpaduan latar belakang budaya serta kerendahan hati para pemain akan memicu performa terbaik tim nasional sepanjang musim panas ini.

"And I can see the multiculturalism, all of their backgrounds, the humility, the kindness, but inside there is also that they are competitive, they are strong and they are committed to doing whatever it takes to ensure that this summer, they perform at their absolute best," kata Marsch.

Dari perwakilan tim negara lain, pemain sayap timnas Mesir Mahmoud Hassan "Trezeguet" mengekspresikan rasa bangganya setelah kembali dipercaya masuk ke dalam skuad final.

"Proud certainly to be among only three players participating in the World Cup for the second time in Egypt's shirt. I have special memories from the Russia World Cup after achieving my dream of playing in the World Cup then," kata جناح منتخب مصر لكرة القدم محمود حسن "تريزيغيه" السبت.

Meskipun menelan hasil buruk pada partisipasi sebelumnya, Trezeguet menilai kegagalan tersebut sebagai proses pembelajaran penting untuk meraih hasil lebih baik.

"The results were not good after we lost the three matches, but I learned a lot. The next experience will be much better than the previous one, God willing," tambah لاعب الأهلي.

Di jajaran tim kepelatihan Mesir, manajer tim Hossam Hassan turut merasa terhormat bisa kembali ke panggung dunia setelah sebelumnya berstatus sebagai pemain pada edisi 1990.

"Great honor for us to be in the World Cup within the technical staff after we participated as players. In Italy 1990, no one expected us to achieve anything, but we forced a draw against European champions Netherlands and we were the better team in the match," kata شقيقه التوأم ومدير المنتخب.

Hassan mengenang performa solid timnya di Italia yang mampu merepotkan tim-tim besar Eropa meskipun akhirnya gagal melaju ke babak berikutnya.

"We drew with Ireland, and we were also close to snatching at least a point from England and reaching the next round, but we were not successful," tambah Hassan.

Ia mengakui adanya perbedaan besar antara mengendalikan taktik dari pinggir lapangan dengan bermain langsung di dalam arena pertandingan.

"Certainly, leading the team from outside the lines is completely different, but we will do everything we can to make Egyptians happy and go as far as possible in the World Cup," tambah Hassan.

Kanada dijadwalkan melakoni laga persahabatan melawan Uzbekistan dan Irlandia di Charlotte sebagai bagian dari persiapan akhir sebelum memulai laga pembuka Grup B pada 12 Juni 2026.