One of Canada's best players will miss FIFA World Cup with an injury
The hits keep coming for the Canadian men’s national team ahead of the FIFA World Cup.
Canada is set to open up its World Cup schedule later this week in Toronto, but they will have to do so without one of their best players. After losing midfielder Marcelo Flores to an injury, the team received more bad news over the weekend regarding centre-back Moïse Bombito.
The 26-year-old Bombito has been recovering from a broken leg that he suffered back in October, but he did play the first 30 minutes of Canada’s friendly against Uzbekistan in Edmonton earlier this month.
The star centre-back did not get any playing time in Canada’s last World Cup tune-up match in Montreal against Ireland.
It was hoped that this was out of an abundance of caution, but new reports have indicated that Bombito will not be healthy enough to play in the upcoming World Cup. TSN’s Matthew Scianitti reported that the decision was made to shut down Bombito.
“[The Canadian men’s national team] is set to replace Moïse Bombito on its World Cup roster after the team determined the centre-back’s surgically repaired leg is not healthy enough for him to compete,” Scianitti wrote.
“Sources also say decision meant to prioritize Bombito’s long-term health.”
#CanMNT is set to replace Moïse Bombito on its World Cup roster after the team determined the centre back's surgically repaired leg is not healthy enough for him to compete, multiple sources tell @TSN_Sports Sources also say decision meant to prioritize Bombito's long-term health
— Matthew Scianitti (@TSNScianitti) June 7, 2026
The Montreal native is one of the team’s higher-profile players, as he is currently playing for OGC Nice in France’s Ligue 1. Bombito was seen as one of the anchors of Canada’s defensive group, and the burden will now be on team management to find a replacement.
That replacement has still not been confirmed, but names like Ralph Priso and Kamal Miller are the most likely candidates. It remains to be seen which direction Canada coach Jesse Marsch goes with both replacements for Bombito and Flores.
This is a massive blow to a Canadian team that is trying to secure its first-ever World Cup victory at the tournament. Having both Bombito and Flores out of the lineup will be a major obstacle, and there are still concerns about whether Alphonso Davies will get healthy in time to play in Canada’s opener on Friday.
If all three players can’t go, Canada will have quite a hill to climb if they want to make noise on home soil.