Canada head coach Jesse Marsch, centre, after a friendly against Mexico, in Arlington, Tex., on Sept. 10.Tony Gutierrez/The Associated Press
Canada coach Jesse Marsch continues to give youth its due, handing Jamie Knight-Lebel, Santiago Lopez and Kwasi Poku their first senior call-ups for the October international window.
The Canadian men, currently ranked 38th in the world, face No. 37 Panama on Oct. 15 at Toronto’s BMO Field.
“Panama will be an important competitive challenge for us as we prepare for the quarterfinals of the Nations League next month,” Marsch said in a statement Tuesday.
BMO Field is also scheduled to host the 2024-25 CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal second leg Nov. 19.
Marsch’s team has just the Panama game scheduled during the FIFA international window.
“Opponents were not available for a friendly at the start of the October window due to major competition qualifying and domestic tournaments,” Canada Soccer said in a Sept. 24 statement. “The global competition schedule created immovable conflicts for every major federation except for U.S.A., Mexico, and Panama.”
The Canadian team is holding a camp in Montreal ahead of the Toronto friendly with an open training session planned for Oct. 9 at Saputo Stadium. Players will also be visiting local youth soccer clubs.
Seventeen of the 26 players called into the Canada camp are 25 or younger with goalkeeper Max Crepeau (30) and midfielder Jonathan Osorio (32) the elder statesmen of the group.
Knight-Lebel and Lopez are both 19 while Poku is 21. All three are Canadian youth internationals.
The roster also features 18-year-old Fulham defender Luc de Fougerolles, 20-year-old Nathan Saliba and 21-year-old Niko Sigur.
Knight-Lebel, currently on loan from Bristol City to Crew Alexandra in the English fourth tier, and Poku, sold by Forge FC to Belgium’s Molenbeek in a Canadian Premier League record transfer in August, have both made four appearances for the national under-20 team, helping Canada reach the knockout stage at the 2022 CONCACAF U-20 Championship.
Lopez scored six goals in seven appearances at the U-20 level internationally, finishing the 2024 CONCACAF U-20 Championship as joint-leading scorer.
Marsch’s camp roster features 12 MLS players including Saliba, Jonathan Sirois and Joel Waterman from CF Montreal, Sam Adekugbe and Ali Ahmed from the Vancouver Whitecaps, and Osorio and Richie Laryea from Toronto FC.
The Canadians are 5-2-6 against Panama, with the most recent result a 2-0 win for Canada in 2023 CONCACAF Nations League semifinal play.