For weeks, the criticism against Steven Caldwell in putting together his weekly Race for the Roster is that he was too loyal to Cyle Larin. Even with his form suffering, Caldwell kept Larin in his starting XI. With his loan spell at Feyenoord a disaster, Caldwell finally heeded the cries and moved the Brampton, Ont. native to the bench.
But now, only days away from Canada’s final international window before Jesse Marsch submits his final FIFA World Cup roster, Caldwell has made a move up top again. Villarreal’s Tani Oluwaseyi has been removed from the starting XI. Back alongside Jonathan David is none other than...Cyle Larin.
Since moving to Southampton on loan in January, Larin’s game has been rejuvenated. He’s playing regular minutes and his contributing goals as Saints look to make their move back to the Premier League. Last Wednesday, Larin set up the winning goal in a key 1-0 victory over Norwich City. This past Saturday, Larin opened the scoring against Oxford United in a 2-0 win. The UConn product has three Championship goals in nine appearances, including three starts.
In looking at the stats behind Caldwell’s move, the numbers don’t lie. While Larin has become a critical part of Southampton, Oluwaseyi’s seen his playing time dwindle in the same period. He’s played a combined 19 minutes in his last four appearances and hasn’t scored since a Champions League loss to Ajax in January. Oluwaseyi’s last La Liga goal came back on Nov. 22.
Oluwaseyi is one of a number of players for whom Canada’s March camp could be of the utmost importance. With several key squad members missing out due to injury, there should be time for Marsch to get a look at players currently on the bubble during the matches against Iceland and Tunisia.
In looking at Caldwell’s squad, the big move this week outside of Larin back into the starting XI is Promise David out of the team altogether. Undergoing hip surgery at the end of February, the 24-year-old Brampton, Ont. will be touch-and-go to be ready in time for June. It’s for that reason that Caldwell made the decision to move on from him. It will be a shame if the Union SG hitman misses out on the World Cup because he appeared to be a lock prior to the injury.
With David on the outside looking in, Jacen Russell-Rowe is now in the team. The 23-year-old Toronto native is a product of the Toronto FC academy and spent the past four seasons in MLS with Columbus Crew, winning an MLS Cup in 2023 and a CONCACAF Leagues Cup in 2024. In February, Russell-Rowe joined Ligue 1 side Toulouse where he is still looking for his first goal. He could be in line for his first Canada appearance later this week.
Here’s a look at this week’s team.
Race for the Roster: Week 38 (4-4-2)
Forwards
STARTERS: Jonathan David (Juventus) and Cyle Larin (Southampton, on loan from Mallorca)
BENCH: Daniel Jebbison (Preston North End, on loan from Bournemouth), Tani Oluwaseyi (Villarreal), Marcelo Flores (Tigres) and Jacen Russell-Rowe (Toulouse)
Midfield and Defenders
STARTING MIDFIELDERS: Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) INJ, Ismaël Koné (Sassuolo), Stephen Eustaquio (Los Angeles FC, on loan from Porto) INJ and Tajon Buchanan (Villarreal)
BENCH: Jacob Shaffelburg (Los Angeles) INJ, Liam Millar (Hull City), Nathan Saliba (Anderlecht), Mathieu Choiniere (Los Angeles FC) and Ali Ahmed (Norwich City)
STARTING DEFENDERS: Richie Laryea (Toronto FC), Derek Cornelius (Rangers, on loan from Marseille) INJ, Moise Bombito (Nice) INJ and Alistair Johnston (Celtic) INJ
BENCH: Niko Sigur (Hajduk Split), Alfie Jones (Middlesbrough) INJ, Joel Waterman (Chicago Fire) and Luc de Fougerolles (Dender, on loan from Fulham) INJ
Goalkeeper
STARTER: Dayne St. Clair (Inter Miami)
BENCH: Maxime Crepeau (Orlando City) and Owen Goodman (Huddersfield Town, on loan from Crystal Palace)
