Kick-off for the European soccer season feels less like an occasion, and more of a slow meander with leagues and qualifying competitions spread out over several weeks. That said, with the Premier League in England and La Liga in Spain staring this past weekend — and Italy’s Serie A and Germany’s Bundesliga beginning next weekend — it does feel like the road to World Cup 2026 has officially begun.
From a Canadian perspective, it has been a wild summer. The transfer window has drawn our attention from what was a disappointing Concacaf Gold Cup for Canada and kept the Canuck footy zeitgeist active, to say the least. And with two weeks still to go until the transfer window closes on Sept. 1st, there is still plenty to keep our eyes on, which brings with it an element of concern.
More on that later.
First up, Jonathan David was the Canadian star we had all focused our attention on — again. For two years, we had speculated where the striker would play. The very fact that he teased us all by running down his contract at Lille rather than engineering a move before his deal expired was just so Jonathan David. The Ottawa boy always banks on himself. By allowing his new club, Juventus, to sign him on a free transfer, that will have added a few decimals to his new contract. It was a smart move in the end, albeit risky.
David scored his first goal for Juve this weekend in a friendly against Atalanta. It was an otherwise quiet match for David, but if he can come even close to his almost 0.5 goals per game while at Lille, the Juve faithful will love him. Seeing a Canadian in that storied kit gives goosebumps. It is a shirt befitting David; he just looks good in it!
Canada’s central midfield conundrum took a turn this summer with CF Montreal man in the middle, Nathan Saliba, turning heads at the Gold Cup. His performances convinced Anderlecht to take a flier on the youngster, and just this weekend we saw the first Canadian derby of the season when Saliba went head-to-head with another youngster who drew attention this summer, Luc de Fougerolles. The centre back was outstanding when called upon by Jesse Marsch, and his parent club Fulham sent him out on loan to Dender in Belgium. The defender started in the 2-0 loss this weekend, while Saliba came off the bench. The present and future, playing in a top league in Europe — good times!
Good times were few and far between for another central midfielder last season — Ismael Kone. The former Montreal star finally saw his relationship with Marseille and head coach Roberto De Zerbi come to a crashing halt with a move to Serie A’s new boys Sassuolo. This, after his former club aired an unsavoury training ground spat between player and coach in a documentary.
The reaction was as overblown as the incident, but it still painted a bleak picture of how one of Canada’s top prospects endured such a difficult season in France at one of the nation’s most historic clubs.
Another midfielder who earned high marks at the Gold Cup was Mathieu Choiniere. It came as a surprise when two weeks ago, he made the move back to North America with LAFC, a club under the same ownership umbrella as his former club Grasshopper. Watching Choiniere latch onto a pass from Heung Min Son this weekend to score his first goal for LAFC made the move make a little more sense. Choiniere never reasserted himself following injury last season in Switzerland, so minutes in MLS in this World Cup year are key.
Minutes played will be a common theme this year. It is why we will be watching national team stalwarts Cyle Larin and Derek Cornelius so closely as the window ticks by. Both are seeking a move away from Mallorca and Marseille, respectively.
Larin, who was joint top scorer last season, was not even in the matchday squad this weekend. Cornelius, who was a regular starter last season in France, was nailed to the bench. A return home to MLS might well be a great fit for Larin, while Cornelius has been linked with Lille and Feyenoord, among others.
There are so many moving parts regarding Canada, and there is no doubt that this will be the most-watched and most-fascinating club season we have ever seen with regard to our men’s national team players. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow will be a spot on Jesse Marsch’s World Cup squad. Although we can be confident in naming the majority of the squad even now, there are some real battles to be fought and narratives yet to even form.
It will be a fun lead-up to World Cup 2026!
from Sportsnet.ca
via i9bet
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