Alphonso Davies eyeing World Cup opener
Canada star Alphonso Davies said he is still hopeful of being fit in time to play in the team's World Cup opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto on 12 June.
The 25 year-old Bayern Munich left-back has been sidelined since suffering a left hamstring injury in the Champions League semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain on 6 May.
Canada and Bayern worked together on a recovery plan for Davies, who reported late to the team on Sunday.
"The first game is coming up pretty quickly," Davies said. "The thing we talked about, me and the coach and the people that were in (a meeting regarding his fitness), I think we understand how important the first game is. But we understand recovery is always an important thing. If I'm recovering as good as possible, let's see. If not, then there's no need to rush, just keep continuing the recovery."
Pressed on whether he believes he can be fit in time to play 12 June, Davies said, "Anything is possible in life. For me, it's (all) depending on how the recovery is going, how these next few days or this week leading up to the game goes."
Davies has scored 15 goals in 58 career caps with Canada, including the country's first-ever goal at a World Cup at the 2022 tournament in Qatar. He is a two-time Concacaf Player of the Year (2021, 2022).
However, he has not played for Canada since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament during the Nations League Finals in March 2025. Davies' agent and Bayern Munich would later question how Canada Soccer handled his post-surgery recovery.
The hamstring issues is the most recent of multiple injuries since the ACL, but coach Jesse Marsch included the star on his 26-man World Cup roster announced last week.
This time around, the sides worked together to devise a recovery plan, and Davies trained on his own during Thursday's session in Montreal.
"Mentally, it was very draining, suffering these injuries," Davies said, adding that he has doubted at times whether he'd be available to play in the World Cup. "I was going into a hole where I was doubting myself, but I had that time off and I thought about why I'm doing this and how important this is to me."
Co-host Canada is in Group B, and will also play Qatar on 18 June and Switzerland on 24 June, with both matches in Vancouver. LAFC midfielder Stephen Eustaquio will step in to captain the side while Davies focuses on his fitness.
