Canada captain Alphonso Davies didn't play in Saturday's 3-0 loss to Morocco because of an injury setback in training, head coach Jesse Marsch said after his team's World Cup campaign came to an end.
Davies, who made his lone appearance of the tournament off the bench in Canada's dramatic last-32 victory over South Africa, was expected to feature in a similar role against Morocco.
But the Bayern Munich left-back, who has been fighting to return ever since his latest hamstring injury in May, felt a setback in training Friday, Marsch said. An MRI came back clean, but Davies "didn't feel right" going into the Morocco game and wasn't confident with his troublesome leg muscle.
"For Alphonso, he's learning to trust his body again. He's been through a lot the last year and three months," Marsch told TSN's Matthew Scianitti, referencing the multiple hamstring issues Davies has sustained since a torn ACL in March 2025. "As much as he wanted to play in this game, and we wanted him to play in this game, we just didn't want to risk him."
Marsch said the plan was for Davies to play 30-35 minutes against Morocco and that he was on a "very linear path" to accomplish that until Friday's setback.
"It killed him more than anyone (not to play), but I think it was the right decision to preserve him and his career, and get him fully healthy," Marsch said.
With Canada now out of the tournament, Davies' World Cup consisted of just 15 minutes of game time.
