Here are 5 youngsters who could crack CanMNT's hypothetical World Cup preliminary squad
With the World Cup now just over a month away, the next few weeks will quickly become a sprint towards the tournament opener on June 11th.
Some teams have already begun their pre-tournament camps, while others have named their rosters, and that will only ramp up as the World Cup approaches.
Of course, from a Canadian perspective, many are waiting to see what sort of roster the CanMNT drops when the time comes for them to do that, as head coach Jesse Marsch has several interesting decisions to make when it comes to choosing his final 26-player list.
Especially given some of the injuries this Canadian team has dealt with in recent months, it feels like the roster they reveal later this month might not be the final one - it must be remembered that players can be replaced right up until the tournament opener, provided that they’re on their country's preliminary roster.
Speaking of that preliminary roster, Canada named theirs on Monday, but they didn’t make it public, so there is a list out there with the 55 players that can be named in Canada’s 26-player World Cup squad.
No provisional squad announcement for the #CanMNT just yet ππ¨π¦ (H/T @TSNScianitti) pic.twitter.com/YpGVGofcyB
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) May 11, 2026
In the end, not seeing that list doesn’t change all too much - for the most part, you can imagine what Canada’s 26-player squad will look like, depending on who is healthy. Perhaps, if there are a handful of new injuries, some surprise faces will enter the picture, but otherwise, this should be a relatively straightforward squad selection.
At the same time, these preliminary lists can be fun to see, as they give an idea of the sort of players Canada is monitoring, while also showing what sort of inroads they’ve made with prospective dual nationals.
Because of that, in honour of Canada’s preliminary squad deadline, here’s a look at five names that’d have been fun to see on a hypothetical Canadian preliminary squad.
Nikola Markovic:
With Canada’s ongoing injury crisis at centre back, that could open the door for some surprise names at the position, and Nikola Markovic could be an interesting one to watch in that regard.
After being drafted first overall by DC United in the Super Draft, the 21-year-old has started to find his feet as a professional, making nine appearances for a total of 306 minutes with his new club - scoring a goal and adding an assist in that time.
NIKOLA MARKOVIC EQUALIZES!!! pic.twitter.com/TQ1m8ni5bf
— D.C. United (@dcunited) April 16, 2026
With his imposing build and defensive ability, he’s not needed long to adapt to the professional game, which is good to see, as it can sometimes take a few seasons for a player to get up to speed. Plus, surprisingly, he’s also featured in midfield, showing good positional versatility early in his career, which is no small detail.
Typically, Canada has had a great record with players out of the NCAA, such as Tajon Buchanan, Cyle Larin, Moïse Bombito, Alistair Johnston and Tani Oluwaseyi, just to name a few, so they wouldn’t be shy in giving someone like Markovic the opportunity if needed - provided he proves he’s ready to step up to this level.
Certainly, he remains a player to watch long-term for this Canadian team, but perhaps their ongoing injury crisis could significantly alter the timeline - at the very least, a preliminary squad inclusion doesn’t seem out of the question, which shows what that injury crisis and his good start to the season have done for his stock.
DC United's Nikola Markovic π¨π¦ made his 1st #MLS start in the scoreless draw vs Philadelphia Union, but as a CM, not his usual CB. The #CanMNT eligible had a monster performance.
— Andre Schaffner π (@A_Schaffner89) April 19, 2026
* 2 interceptions
* 3(4) tackles won
* 3 blocked shots
* 8(11) duels won
* 7(10) aerial wins pic.twitter.com/cxrNO1bUhp
Jovan Ivanisevic:
Another 21-year-old defender to watch is Jovan Ivanisevic, as the former Toronto FC academy product has continued to find his feet in Europe, having spent time with Croatian side Istra 1961 and Italian side Bologna in recent years.
This year, a loan to Bosnian club FC Sarajevo from Istra has proven to be a good one for Ivanisevic, who has already racked up 815 minutes across 11 appearances with his new club, playing as both a centre back and full back, scoring two goals.
Given that he’d only played 15 first-team appearances for Istra, and never featured for Bologna’s first team (he played 18 games for their Primavera side while on loan in Italy last year), these minutes could go a long way towards accelerating his development, seeing that he’s on loan to Sarajevo from Istra through the end of the calendar year.
With his age, he’s already done well to rack up a decent amount of minutes under his belt, showing why he’s a fascinating prospect to watch from a Canadian perspective.
When seeing that, and his versatility, that could make him a potential preliminary squad inclusion, as it mustn’t be forgotten that Canada has also dealt with their fair share of full back injuries - it doesn’t hurt to have someone with that sort of positional versatility on call if absolutely needed.
No doubt, though, you can see why Ivanisevic is one to watch long term, showing that between him and Markovic, Canada has some fascinating players to watch out for defensively in the next World Cup cycle (and that’s without mentioning the likes of Luc De Fougerolles and Jamie Knight-Lebel).
Aleksandr Guboglo:
Considering that Guboglo has only made two appearances for CF Montréal this year, for a total of 139 minutes, it’s a big surprise to have him here, but his name has attracted interest in Canadian circles in recent weeks.
The big reason for that? He was included on FIFA’s Change of Association platform, which indicates that the 19-year-old has filed a one-time switch from Haiti to Canada, after having represented Haiti at the 2023 Concacaf U17 Championships.
Granted, it’s worth noting that this change was most likely done with the 2027 U20 World Cup in mind - as a 2007-born, Guboglo remains eligible for that tournament, and this switch allows him to represent Canada at the U20 Concacaf Championships this summer, which serves as qualifiers for that U20 World Cup tournament.
Therefore, he’s very unlikely to be included in Canada’s preliminary squad for the World Cup, although you can’t forget that he did have 27 first-team appearances for CF Montréal in 2025 - perhaps, that run of games was enough to get him in the mind of Jesse Marsch.
With that sort of experience under his belt at his stage, that could push him to earn a preliminary squad nod as a high-potential option who could round out a squad if absolutely needed, especially when considering the sort of positional versatility he flexed as a teenager in MLS last season. 
Adonija Ouanda:
In recent months, Canadians have started to learn about Adonija Ouanda, a 21-year-old attacker who has been earning minutes in the Czech Republic’s top flight for FC Slovacko.
On loan from Czech giants Slavia Prague, who signed him at the start of the year, he’s done extremely well at Slovacko, scoring three goals and adding two assists in just 13 appearances with his new club.
Because of that, you have to be excited about his long-term career prospects, especially if he can find a way to break through at Slavia, who often competes in European competitions and are a good gateway club to the top five leagues.
When seeing Ouanda’s performances, you can’t help but think of the way someone like Promise David burst onto the scene after taking a similar unheralded pathway through lesser-watched European leagues, showing why Ouanda has quickly become one to watch.
π¨π πππππ πΆππππ π posílá Slovácko do vedení! π₯
— Oneplay Sport (@oneplaysportcz) April 11, 2026
Kanadský útoΔník si v brejkové situaci vedl na jedniΔku a trefil se pΕesnΔ k tyΔi. π€#OneplaySport | #ChanceLiga pic.twitter.com/9OgbDNkVZG
Much like everyone else on this list, this World Cup comes a bit soon for Ouanda - there’s a reason why this piece is discussing them as potential names to round out a 55-player preliminary squad, and not Canada’s 26-player World Cup roster - but he’s a good name to already put on the fringes of Canada’s roster discussions.
With how quickly things can change for attackers, who can completely alter their career prospects with a few good months of form, it feels like Canada shouldn’t ignore what Ouanda has shown in his first taste of Czech football, having previously shown decently well in a couple of seasons in the Serbian second flight, which earned him this move.
Luca Koleosho:
Of course, a preliminary squad discussion wouldn’t be complete without a long shot Hail Mary option, and it feels like Luca Koleosho would be that player from a Canadian perspective - at least among publicly known dual nationals.
Given that the 21-year-old winger is also eligible to represent the US and Italy, his future has remained a hotly debated topic for many years, dating back to even before the 2022 World Cup, as it can’t be forgotten that he participated in multiple CanMNT camps as a teenager in 2022, even if he never earned a cap in either camp.
Since then, his focus has been with Italy, as he’s represented their U19s, U20s and U23s, but with Italy’s struggles at the first team level, you can wonder how interested he’d be in representing their senior team after they missed out on the World Cup for a third consecutive tournament - you have to think that he’d have been in a hypothetical Italian squad for this summer had they qualified.
Because of that, one can only imagine that both Canada and the US have been in his ear about a potential call-up for this World Cup, with both offering him the chance to represent a tournament co-host, which is quite a unique opportunity for any player to have.
There’s no doubting his talent as a player - he’s scored three goals in 608 minutes across 17 appearances for Ligue 1 side Paris FC this season, and has featured in the Premier League (one goal and two assists in 15 appearances), La Liga (one goal in eight appearances) and the EFL Championship (two goals 28 appearances) in recent seasons, where he’s played with English side Burnley and Spanish side Espanyol.
π³π πππ π π ππππ βοΈπ
— Paris FC (@ParisFC) May 6, 2026
La sublime réalisation de Koleosho face à l'AS Monaco est nominée pour le #ButduMois d'avril en @Ligue1 !
Votez pour Lucaπhttps://t.co/1zxKCLP0L3#ParisFC #CertifiéParis | #ButduMois pic.twitter.com/wOXWYs0Dp1
As a result, you can only imagine what sort of reaction there would be had it come out that Koleosho were in a Canadian preliminary squad, for example, as he’d immediately vault into discussions towards being included in Canada’s World Cup squad.
Yet, that shows that while the other four names on their list are more fun inclusions with eyes on the future, Koleosho’s name is an extremely intriguing name to watch in the here and now, given what he’s accomplished, and what he’s expected to achieve if he can reach his potential.
