Canada Coach Hopes for Strong Vancouver Support

Canada aims to learn from their 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina in their opening 2026 World Cup qualifier and secure a victory in their second Group A match against Qatar in Vancouver on Thursday.

All four teams in the group – Canada, Qatar, Switzerland, and Bosnia and Herzegovina – currently sit on one point, with one goal scored and one conceded, heading into Thursday's fixtures. Switzerland will face Bosnia and Herzegovina before Canada's clash with Qatar.

"We know that given how tight our group is right now, every moment and every point is important, and we're focused on that," said Canada coach Jesse Marsch at a pre-match press conference.

"We're not trying to be overly generous; we're just focused on the match and on Qatar, what they're good at, what we want to limit from them, and how we want the game to look. I think we felt, especially in the first half against Bosnia, that the game looked more like what they wanted it to look like than what we wanted it to look like. So, we need to make sure that from the very beginning, we set the tone and play the game that benefits us from the start. We'll aim to establish that early in the match."

After several days of uncertainty surrounding Alphonso Davies' fitness, Marsch confirmed that the left-back is healthy and ready to play. "He trained this week and will be available tomorrow. We'll see how the match unfolds and then make a decision on how we'll use him," he stated.

Having started their campaign in Toronto, the Canadian squad has moved to the West Coast in Vancouver, and Marsch is eager to play in front of a packed stadium at BC Place. "I know Vancouver is a football city. We've seen it many times before, and we expect this place to be great for us. I mean, red everywhere, to be great, to support these guys, to support their players, their team, their country," he enthused.

"These guys will be ready to perform, and we want to make sure that Qatar feels not only the pressure on the field but also from the crowd. So, show up, be loud, use the echo of the stadium, and make sure we have a 12th man in the stadium."