Concacaf announced on Friday the full roster lists for every team participating in this month’s Men’s U-20 Championship in Honduras. Canada has named a 20-man squad for the tournament, cutting it down from the 25 players named to their evaluation camp earlier in 2022. Included in the final roster are six current Canadian Premier League players: York United forward Lowell Wright, Cavalry FC winger Jean-Aniel Assi, Valour FC midfielder Matt Catavolo, Pacific FC midfielder Kamron Habibullah, and Forge FC fullback Kwasi Poku and goalkeeper Dino Bontis. Both Assi and Habibullah are currently in the CPL on loan from Canadian MLS sides — CF Montréal and Vancouver Whitecaps, respectively — but they have each played significant roles for their CPL teams so far this season. Also in the squad are former CPLers Matteo Campagna (Vancouver Whitecaps, formerly on loan to York United) and Keesean Ferdinand (CF Montréal, formerly on loan to Atlético Ottawa), as well as highly-touted Europe-based players such as OGC Nice's Justin Smith and VfL Wolfsburg's Jesse Costa. The roster also features five players invited to train with the group who are not on the official squad. The full team, to be coached by senior national team assistant Mauro Biello, is listed below. Canada will be in Group E for the tournament, meaning they will compete against Cuba (June 18, 4 p.m. ET), the United States (June 20, 8:30 p.m. ET), and Saint Kitts and Nevis (June 22, 4 p.m. ET) in Tegucigalpa. The top three sides from each of the four groups advance to the knockout round. This year's U-20 championship serves as qualification for two separate competitions. The four semifinalists will all qualify for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia, while the two finalists will also book a place at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. All of Canada's matches at the Concacaf Men's U-20 Championship will be broadcast live on OneSoccer.
Canada's Roster:
1- GK- Ben Alexander | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC Academy 2- FB- Noah Abatneh | ITA / SS Lazio Rome 3- FB- Kwasi Poku | CAN / Forge FC Hamilton 4- CB- Justin Smith | FRA / OGC Nice 5- CB- Jamie Knight-Lebel | ENG / Bristol City FC 6- CB- Matteo Campagna | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 7- W- Jean-Aniel Assi | CAN / Cavalry FC 8- M- Rida Zouhir | CAN / CF Montréal 9- F- Lowell Wright | CAN / York United FC 10- M- Matt Catavolo | CAN / Valour FC 11- F- Kamron Habibullah | CAN / Pacific FC 12- CB- Loïc Cloutier | CAN / Académie de CF Montréal 13- FB- Kobe Franklin | CAN / Toronto FC II 14- M- Gabriel Pellegrino | GER / SC Freiburg 15- FB- Keesean Ferdinand | CAN / CF Montréal 16- M- Maël Henry | CAN / Académie de CF Montréal 17- M- Jesse Costa | GER / VfL Wolfsburg 18- GK- Dino Bontis | CAN / Forge FC Hamilton 19- F- Tiago Coimbra | BRA / SE Palmeiras 20- F- Hugo Mbongue Mbongue | CAN / Toronto FC II TRAINING PLAYERS: GK- Adisa De Rosario | CAN / Toronto FC Academy CB- Jefferson Alphonse | CAN / CF Montréal CB- Adam Pearlman | CAN / Toronto FC FB- Eric White | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 M- Hugo Tavares | POR / FC Paços de FerreiraContinue reading...