Alphonso Davies said he feels able to play in Canada’s first World Cup soccer game on Wednesday despite a pulled hamstring in a Bayern Munich game.
“I’m ready to go,” Davies said in an interview with TSN on Sunday.
“When I got my injury, I was devastated instantly. Not just for me, but for the team I was playing with at the time and obviously the World Cup, he added. But luckily the injury wasn’t too bad and now we’re still in recovery mode, still trying to heal. And yes, it’s going well, and I’m just happy to be here and happy to represent my country. »
Now he just has to convince the medical staff in Canada.
Canada, ranked 41e world-ranked player, makes his first appearance at the men’s soccer World Cup since 1986 and will take on second-placed Belgium on Wednesday in a Group F duel.
“We want him on the pitch,” said midfielder Jonathan Osorio. He’s our star player. It is important to us. We’ll see what the medical staff say when they go to examine him with the coaching staff. They are the ones who will decide if Alphonso is ready to play. »
Davies arrived in Qatar on Friday evening after being treated in Munich for an injury sustained in a Bundesliga match on November 6.
When he met with reporters on Saturday, head coach John Herdman didn’t seem so positive about his youngster’s chances of taking part in the game against Belgium.
Although Davies was able to participate in portions of contact training, he was still looking to regain his top speed, Herdman explained.
“He hasn’t reached that top speed yet and when you have a hamstring injury, that’s always the key moment. This is where the hamstring is pushed to its limit,” Herdman said.
Davies was more optimistic: “I know they wouldn’t send me out if it was, you know, 50-50. I think they knew 100% that I would be able to recover well and compete in this tournament. »
On Saturday and Sunday, Davies took part in brief portions of the workouts available to members of the media. “It’s very stimulating,” said forward Jonathan David.