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Ten Canadians deserving a call-up for the September-October window

September 14, 2026 (Modified: September 14, 2026) Andre Schaffner
Ten Canadians deserving a call-up for the September-October window
Courtesy: Thiago Szwarc/OneSoccer

After a nearly three-month hiatus since their home World Cup ended, the Canadian men's national team will reconvene later this month for a three-match super window. With the team's return comes speculation over which new players might crack the roster for the next World Cup cycle. This is especially so given the unusually large window and the fact that it comes on the heels of the summer's World Cup, when roster renewal is a prevalent theme for every nation.

Canada also has a host of serious injuries to players who would undoubtedly be receiving a call-up if they were fit. This increases the opportunities for players on the periphery or on the cusp of a call-up. Canada will be without the services of midfielder Ismaël Koné, centre-back Moïse Bombito, wingers Ali Ahmed and Marcelo Flores, and right back Alistair Johnston.

Here are ten players who are worthy of a call to the squad by Canada manager Jesse Marsch. Whether the manager agrees with this assessment will be interesting to see.

1. Jacen Russell-Rowe — Toulouse FC, Ligue 1 (France)

24-year-old striker — 4 games played, 1 goal

Starting his first full season with Toulouse after arriving in February 2026, Russell-Rowe did not play a big role with his new club or accumulate many minutes in his first half-season as he adjusted to his move to France after three seasons with Columbus Crew. He debuted with the Canadian national team over three years ago but has only nine appearances with limited minutes. He did start the training match in January against Guatemala and scored in the game. While the top three spots in the striker pool currently belong to Jonathan David, Cyle Larin, and Promise David, the spots behind them are not so clearly defined. Neither Tani Oluwaseyi nor Daniel Jebbison have been able to lay claim to the fourth spot despite ample opportunities.

2. James Pantemis — Portland Timbers, MLS

29-year-old goalkeeper — 24 games, 1 clean sheet, 69.4% save percentage

After a season competing with and then winning the Portland starting keeper's spot over Maxime Crépeau, Pantemis is now in his second season as the undisputed Portland number one. He has been called up to the Canadian senior team previously but has never been able to earn his first cap, although he did start and play the January training match against Guatemala, keeping a clean sheet. There is a belief among some fans and pundits that Pantemis was unfairly excluded from competing for a spot in Canada's goalkeeping set-up over the past two years.

3. Jamie Knight-Lebel — Motherwell FC, Scottish Premiership

21-year-old centre-back — 9 games played so far, including Europa League qualifiers

Currently on loan to Motherwell from Bristol City, Knight-Lebel has been on the periphery of the national team after making his senior debut against Suriname in November 2024. Highly touted by Canada since his academy days at Bristol City, and after year-long loan stints at EFL League Two sides Crewe Alexandra and then Swindon Town, Knight-Lebel hopes success with Motherwell will translate into a place in the Robins' senior squad next year. With Bombito unavailable until into the new year, and several current Canadian centre-backs on the wrong side of 30 before the next World Cup, this could be an opportunity for Knight-Lebel to become more firmly established in the centre-back pool.

4. Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty — Red Bull New York, MLS

22-year-old full back — 25 games in all competitions, including 17 starts

Marshall-Rutty is a full back who also spent considerable time in his youth career at Toronto FC as a winger. Expectations for Marshall-Rutty were extremely high as a 16-year-old, possibly unfairly so. He has yet to meet those lofty expectations, although there is an argument that Toronto FC, his first club, failed to develop the talented youngster properly. An early move to Liverpool's youth set-up was rumoured, but TFC held out for an outrageous $20M selling fee that no club was willing to meet. Since then he has moved on to CF Montréal, Charlotte SC, and now Red Bull New York. With Alistair Johnston unlikely to be fit for the upcoming window, this could be Marshall-Rutty's opportunity to back up former teammate Richie Laryea and potentially earn his first senior start. However, that will depend on the severity of a hamstring injury he just suffered that caused him to miss only his second match of the season.

5. Theo Corbeanu — Toronto FC, MLS

24-year-old right-sided winger — 11 games, 7 starts, 1 goal, 4 assists

The Theo Corbeanu redemption arc this season would come full circle with a call-up to the national team. Corbeanu has earned a call-up through his play this season after recovering from a knee injury early in the year. He has not been called up since early in the 2022 World Cup cycle under John Herdman, where the then teenager showed much promise. But a club career that had Corbeanu on the cusp of the Premier League and La Liga appeared to go sideways as much as upwards, and his stock fell accordingly — until recently. After being held out due to a knee injury early in the current season, Corbeanu has been finding his touch and building his confidence since returning to Toronto's line-up mid-season. With Junior Hoilett likely out of the national team picture now, no credible back-up or challenger to Tajon Buchanan has yet stepped up. The timing seems right for Corbeanu to return to the national team set-up.

6. Jeevan Badwal — Vancouver Whitecaps FC, MLS

20-year-old midfielder — 23 starts in 28 games across all competitions, 3 goals and 3 assists

Badwal was called into the January 2026 camp and played the training match against Guatemala but has yet to earn an official cap. Badwal has been successfully integrated into Vancouver's experienced line-up and has not looked out of place. He is a talented playmaker with good attacking instincts, though he is still getting comfortable with the physical aspects of the game and his defensive duties. Ismaël Koné and Jonathan Osorio's injuries open up an immediate need for depth in the Canada squad. The only thing that might prevent Badwal's call-up is a recent hamstring injury of his own, although he has returned to the pitch for the Whitecaps this past weekend.

7. Justin Smith — CD Eldense, Spanish Segunda División

23-year-old midfielder — played all minutes across 5 starts

Smith captained Canada's U-20 men's team but has yet to earn a senior call-up. The Paris-born Smith has been a fixture in Spain's second tier over the past few seasons and has also made six La Liga appearances with his previous club RCD Espanyol. A solid, physical player who has occasionally played centre-back, Smith is usually deployed as a central defensive midfielder, where he is known for his passing range and excels in the holding role. As such, Smith offers a slightly different profile to other midfielders in the Canadian pool, though whether Jesse Marsch values a player of his skill set may prove the deciding factor in whether he gets a look.

8. Adonija Ouanda — Slavia Prague, Czech Chance Liga

21-year-old right winger — 3 games, 1 goal, 1 assist

Ouanda was born in Côte d'Ivoire but has roots in Edmonton. Recently acquired by Slavia Prague, Ouanda could make his first appearance in the Champions League with Slavia after having won the starting spot on the wing, giving his team an option with pace. As a right-sided winger, Ouanda could provide another alternative and depth piece behind Tajon Buchanan. However, it appears that a recent recurrence of an undisclosed injury picked up earlier in the summer may curtail his chances of a call-up this window. That Ouanda deserves a look from Jesse Marsch should not be in dispute.

9. Nikola Marković — DC United, MLS

22-year-old centre-back — 18 games across all competitions, 1 goal, 1 assist

The 2025 first overall draft pick of DC United from Gatineau, Québec. Marković closed out his college career at North Carolina in style, leading his team to the national championship, falling short only in extra time. Among his year-end accolades were being named a MAC Hermann Trophy semi-finalist and a spot on the 2025 NCAA College Cup All-Tournament Team. As a rookie, Marković has not started many games for DC United due to the centre-back depth the team currently possesses. However, he has been regularly called upon as a late-game substitute, often to see out matches where the team is seeking to preserve a positive result. The physically imposing defender — he stands 1.93m tall — has been used in a variety of positions in that late-game defensive role. It is hard to imagine he will play such a supporting role next season. Like fellow centre-back Jamie Knight-Lebel, the current circumstances within Canada's centre-back pool provide an ideal opportunity for Marković to get acclimated to Jesse Marsch and the national team's style of play.

10. Matteo De Brienne — GAIS, Swedish Allsvenskan

24-year-old left back — 24 games, 19 starts across all competitions, 1 goal, 3 assists

De Brienne began his career in the CPL with Valour FC and then Atlético Ottawa before earning a move to Swedish club GAIS in 2025. With Valour, De Brienne was named the CPL Best Canadian U-21 Player of the Year. He is known for a high work rate and a direct approach to the game with a minimum of flair. He was another player called into the January 2026 training camp but played only nine minutes off the bench against Guatemala. Although Alphonso Davies is back fit and in great form, there are current injury concerns throughout the rest of the full-back pool, Richie Laryea excepted. In the upcoming camp, Laryea will likely play on his usual right side with Alistair Johnston injured. Others who can play left back are either working back to full fitness from a long-term injury, like Sam Adekugbe, or are injured as well, such as Zorhan Bassong. A better opportunity for Matteo De Brienne to earn a cap might not come along.

This list will certainly be open to debate, and other players were considered for inclusion. Two players in particular were close but are not quite there yet — Minnesota United striker Marcus Caldeira and Toronto FC midfielder Markus Cimermancic. Both show great promise but are held back, for now, by insufficient experience to topple the incumbents and their nearest challengers at their respective positions. Midfield and striker are among Canada's deepest positions on the roster at the present time.

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