3 KEY takeaways from Jesse Marsch's first CanMNT squad ahead of June friendlies
Exactly two weeks after his hiring as CanMNT head coach, Jesse Marsch revealed his first squad on Monday, naming the 26 players he’ll bring to Europe for friendlies against the Netherlands and France early next month.
As expected, there aren’t too many surprises in this team, either, with no first-time call-ups in the group, with Marsch going for familiarity in his first camp in charge.
Unsurprisingly, his squad features a good amount of experience, too, which Marsch will likely lean on for guidance, as he begins to work with this team for the first time.
Along with the presence of some intriguing youngsters, many of which will be expected to be key for the coach going forward, it sets a good tone for what’s to come under Marsch.
Of course, with a player pool as deep as Canada’s, there are also some key absences, some of whom will have been expected to make Canada’s Copa América squad, making it intriguing to see if they can claw back in before that squad is announced following those friendlies.
Other than that, however, it was a relatively straightforward announcement, after some had wondered if there might be some big surprises as Marsch set to put his stamp on his team. Instead, this suggests the transition might be gradual, which given what lies ahead of him, is understandable to see.
Now, we’ll have to see how this squad looks live, both in terms of the personnel he chooses and the style of play he ends up employing, but that will remain up in the air until this team takes the field for the first time under their new coach next week.
Until then, here are three key takeaways from this squad.
Marsch goes for familiarity in first squad:
As Marsch got set to announce this squad, something to watch was if he would shake things up, or if he’d elect to go for familiarity to ease his transition into his first camp.
Here, it looks like he went for the latter, calling in players who have all been in at least one camp, with 25 out of 26 players having earned at least one senior cap already, with Tom McGill the lone outlier.
Other than the inclusion of 18-year-old goalkeeper Grégoire Swiderski as a training player, which was likely done due to Canada playing their France friendly in Bordeaux, where Swiderski is based at the club level, the squad is pretty much filled with expected names, as a result.
Of course, that’s not all that surprising. Unless Marsch was going to bring in an uncapped dual-national, most promising young Canadian players already have experience on this team, be it through the 2023 Gold Cup, or in Mauro Biello’s last camp in March. That includes Moïse Bombito and Luc De Fougerolles, among others.
Interestingly, however, Marsch did turn to some experienced names for this camp, too, as 31-year-old Jonathan Osorio is in despite recently coming off an injury, while 33-year-old Junior Hoilett earned his first call-up of 2024 after a strong half-season with Aberdeen in Scotland.
Jesse Marsch revealed his 1st #CanMNT squad for the June friendlies vs🇳🇱+🇫🇷
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) May 27, 2024
He's called in 26+Gregoire Swiderski as a training player. Familiarity is a theme, as all 26 have been in a squad
No Ali Ahmed is a surprise; Jayden Nelson+Theo Corbeanu+Jacen Russell-Rowe also miss out https://t.co/ZTEj8nkb3T
On the flipside, that meant leaving out some intriguing younger names, as Ali Ahmed was left at home despite some strong performances for the Vancouver Whitecaps, Jayden Nelson was omitted despite recently finding form for Rosenborg, Jacen Russell-Rowe is absent amid a breakout season for the Columbus Crew, and Theo Corbeanu missed out after a mixed showing with a relegated Granada in La Liga.
Yet, with the inclusion of Osorio, who has played a key role as captain of a surging TFC side, and Hoilett, who has revitalized his game after a quiet year, Marsch will see the leadership they bring as invaluable.
And based on the task that awaits him in his first camp, that’s understandable. With Canada set to play two tough friendlies against the Netherlands and France, before diving right into their Copa América adventure, bringing in a completely refreshed squad could’ve been a big risk for him to take.
As Marsch transitions the team over from the John Herdman era, some level of familiarity will be key, which can be provided by veterans such as Osorio, Hoilett and Samuel Piette.
Now, however, it’ll be interesting to see what Marsch’s first leadership group looks like. Certainly, those three would be expected to be key leadership figures, but with all three likely to start on the bench, it’ll be intriguing to see who gets named as a captain.
In Biello’s last camp, he shook things up and named Stephen Eustáquio a captain for their Copa América playoff, which was a well-deserved nod for a key emotional leader for this side, and one has to imagine he’s a strong contender to earn the armband permanently going forward, for example.
Of course, he’s not the only candidate to consider - Alphonso Davies is now one of the team’s most-tenured players and admitted last camp that he told Biello to consider him in a leadership role, while Jonathan David has worn the armband on several occasions for his club, Lille.
One has to imagine those three are all included in a leadership group, along with someone like Alistair Johnston, but it’ll be interesting to see who ends up wearing the armband when it comes down to it for the matches, and if Marsch decides to make a long-term captain appointment.
At the same time, that will be secondary to the work Marsch will be doing to ensure the group is committed and bought into his system, which requires buy-in from across the board.
Having the leaders on board for that will help, no doubt, making it possible for the buy-in to occur, but with Marsch often touting the collective in his opening press conference, seeing that manifest itself will be key.
How might the team line up?
Of course, it’s hard to glean much from a routine squad announcement on how this Canadian team might look in June, but one can certainly make inferences, especially based on how Marsch constructed this squad.
For example, the big thing to watch was his backline, which was an intriguing point of discussion leading up to this announcement, especially after Marsch’s appearance on the ‘Call it What You Want” podcast, in which he noted he wanted to play Alphonso Davies up the pitch, before naming an interesting crew of MLS defenders he had his eye on.
On the Call It What You Want podcast Jesse Marsch discussed the CanMNT CB depth & highlighted these players.
— Josh Deming (@tv_jjd) May 22, 2024
Moïse Bombito
Kyle Hiebert
Zac McGraw
Kamal Miller
Joel Waterman
He mentioned that Bombito and Hiebert play in similar systems so that could be a duo to keep an eye on🇨🇦
As a result, when looking at the defenders Marsch called in, a few things stand out. One is the inclusion of Kyle Hiebert and Dominick Zator, who are both centre backs by trade, but also have familiarity playing as full backs, with Zator even finding himself listed as one on this squad.
That’s key to note, because if Davies is indeed going to play higher up the pitch, that leaves no natural left back on this squad with Sam Adekugbe missing out due to injury, and if you exclude Hiebert and Zator, Alistair Johnston and Richie Laryea are the only two other natural full backs in this squad.
Laryea can play on the left, so there could be a scenario where Marsch looks to employ that, especially if he plays a back four as many expect him to after mostly using back-four formations in stints at the New York Red Bulls, Red Bull Salzburg, RB Leipzig and Leeds United, making it likely he does.
Or, one could wonder if he sees a scenario in which either Hiebert or Zator play at full back, helping give Canada the flexibility of turning their formation into a three in possession if they so desire, while also giving cover for some of their attack-minded wide players to thrive.
For example, one option for Marsch could be to play a 4-2-3-1 with Hiebert and either Johnston or Laryea are his full backs, while Davies and Buchanan are his wingers. In that scenario, Hiebert could play defensively as almost a third centre back, freeing up Johnston or Laryea to push forward, as they often do, helping support Davies and Buchanan out wide.
Or, he could just play a true back three, choosing his best option between Hiebert, Zator, Kamal Miller, Derek Cornelius, Moïse Bombito and Luc De Fougerolles to form that trio, freeing up Johnston to move from the back three to a natural wing back position after spending most of the last three years as a centre back for Canada.
Otherwise, the other key tactical question to watch will be up front, as Marsch has brought in a lot of forwards, and few midfielders. Because of that, one can wonder if he might employ a two-striker formation, a Red Bull hallmark Marsch has used in the past, with the famed Red Bull ‘4-2-2-2’ a system he’s dabbled with before.
Given that Jonathan David, Cyle Larin, Iké Ugbo, Theo Bair and Charles Andreas-Brym are all #9s, while Jacob Shaffelburg has occasionally played there for Nashville SC, it could make sense for Marsch to start two of them up front in a 4-2-2-2. That doesn’t alleviate a big concern that Canada has had in the past, which is that would make their midfield quite light, putting a lot of pressure on the usual Canadian midfield pair of Eustáquio and Ismaël Koné instead of giving them support in a third player, but that also depends on how they deploy the front two.
With David having played as a #10 before, playing him underneath another striker could help out the midfield, especially if the other striker can press high up the pitch and stretch defensive lines, freeing up David in possession and offering support to the midfield out of possession. When looking at players with those profiles, Ugbo or Bair could make a lot of sense for someone who can both stretch lines and hold-up the ball, Larin is someone who can occupy defenders, while Brym and Shaffelburg can press and stretch lines with his speed, giving Marsch flexibility at the striker position.
Other than those two tactical questions, however, the big questions to answer will be about who starts at certain positions.
For example, in goal, will Maxime Crépeau get the reigns after finally battling to earn Canada’s #1 shirt over Milan Borjan in their last camp, or will Dayne St.Clair’s solid play with Minnesota United lately give him a shot? How about at centre back, where it feels like anyone between Miller, Cornelius or Bombito can start (and that’s without throwing Hiebert and Zator into that mix), while one certainly can’t ignore the talent of Luc De Fougerolles and how he might fit in the system, even if he lacks professional experience?
Then, in terms of the midfield and the attack, is there a chance for Mathieu Choinière to start in midfield given his work rate and how he might fit in a Marsch system? And how about Liam Millar out wide, with his ability to get up and down the pitch? Of course, we just looked at the forward battle and how crowded that is, so that remains something to watch.
But that shows what Marsch has to do in his first camp, where he’ll have to stamp out his system and make key personnel decisions, which will be closely monitored given what they could mean going forward. 
Some players to watch:
Otherwise, as mentioned at the end of the last point, another key thing to watch in this camp are some individual players, some of which could be set to thrive under Marsch, and will be expected to stand out.
First, Moïse Bombito could have a massive camp, especially with Marsch electing to leave Joel Waterman out, leaving Bombito as the main right-footed centre back in this squad, giving him an edge for minutes. In fact, two experienced names in Cornelius and Miller may have to battle things out to feature alongside Bombito if Canada uses a back four, while Bombito would also fit in a back three if Marsch does choose to employ that, too. Either way, with his speed, aerial ability, 1v1 defending and his passing ability, Bombito feels set to become a rock at the back for Canada, one they can build around going forward.
And this is a big reason why I’d love to see Moïse Bombito start in that #CanMNT backline long-term - he can JET
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) April 11, 2024
His speed, size, 1v1 defending and ball-playing ability is a combination that we really haven’t seen from any 🇨🇦 CB options in a while https://t.co/SO3cZPjNeW
Elsewhere at the back, Kyle Hiebert feels like the other name who could have the most to gain thanks to his positional flexibility. Plus, having spent lots of time in a St.Louis system that sometimes operates like a Red Bulls team with how they press and play in transition, he’ll be used to playing the sort of football that Marsch likes, which could give him an advantage.
Moving up the pitch, Stephen Eustáquio could be a key piece, as his ability to cover ground and do everything in the midfield will fit in nicely under Marsch, as he’ll continue to be a key cog after arguably being this team’s most important player over the last three years under John Herdman.
The bigger question will be how Eustáquio’s midfield partner Ismaël Koné fits in, but if Marsch can find a way to give Koné defensive cover, his skills in possession, such as his dribbling and his passing, will be perfect for the sort of vertical attacking play Marsch has said he wants to employ. Of course, that could be Mathieu Choinière’s music, too, especially with his ability to cover ground on and off the ball, so perhaps he slots in alongside Eustáquio in a pivot underneath Koné, for example.
Otherwise, the speed of Liam Millar could be an asset, along with his improved defensive play after spending most of the year at wing back, which could earn him key minutes. The same goes for other speedsters like Shaffelburg and Brym, too.
Then, of course, that leads nicely to Canada’s “speedy big 2” of Alphonso Davies and Tajon Buchanan, who could play a big role as wide players on this team. With their ability to cut inside and score goals, as well as their desire to stretch the field wide and create through their speed and quick feet, getting the most out of them could help this team a lot offensively, especially with Marsch’s desire to play with verticality.
What a GOLAZO here from Alphonso Davies, who has scored a MASSIVE goal for Bayern Munich to give them the lead in the 2nd leg of their #UCL SF vs Real Madrid
— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) May 8, 2024
Against Davies's potential future club, what a way to open his #UCL account#CanMNTpic.twitter.com/g2WnNqMLpD
Lastly, Jonathan David is one to watch. A relentless presser, his ability to score and create will make him a key figure when leading the line, as he seems tailor-made for Marsch’s system, on and off the ball. Already a key piece of this Canadian team, his importance could grow under his new head coach, similar to how he’s become indispensable for manager Paulo Fonseca at Lille, who has similar demands of him tactically.
