Moïse Bombito won his World Cup fitness race.
Alphonso Davies, meanwhile, will have to wait a little longer.
Head coach Jesse Marsch announced Bombito — a key central defender — will be available when Canada opens its tournament on home soil Friday against Bosnia-Herzegovina
His status was unknown leading up to Thursday's roster deadline as he worked back from a broken leg, but the Montreal product was included in the country's 26-man squad.
"He'll be ready to contribute," Marsch said at a pre-match press conference. "He's not fully at 100 per cent, but he's reached his top speed. He's shown in training that every day he's getting stronger and better, and can focus more on football behaviours. I don't see any reason why a week from now, he's not ready to even be considered as a starter."
Marsch added the goal is "to get (Bombito) to 100 per cent."
"But even if we get him to 90, 95 per cent, that's still a pretty damn good player," Marsch said.
Davies, the Canadian captain and star left back, is the only player not available for Friday's showdown at Toronto Stadium. The 25-year-old was expected to miss out as he recovers from an injured hamstring, but that wasn't official until Thursday.
Marsch, however, said Davies had an MRI earlier this week and is progressing.
"It showed very positive signs that he's healing incredibly well, almost completely, so we're getting ready to ramp things up," said Marsch, whose team sits No. 30 in the FIFA rankings. "He's showing, like he always has, a real good ability to recover from muscle injuries."
The coach added that having the Bayern Munich man's personal physiotherapist as part of the process has been "very helpful."
"The concentration on his body's needs every day," Marsch said. "We're really hopeful that over the next days and weeks that we can accelerate things to give him a chance to contribute."
Davies scored Canada's first-ever World Cup goal at the 2022 event in Qatar.
Bosnian head coach Sergej Barbarez wouldn't bite when asked what the absence will mean Friday for his 64th-ranked side.
"This is a team sport," Barbarez said through a translator. "I cannot say that this is an advantage, him not playing … (but) there's no doubt that he's a top-notch player."
Bombito fractured his left tibia playing for OGC Nice in October and has been rehabbing back to full health ever since.
Marsch said the 26-year-old has made some great strides in recent weeks.
"The combination with him of talent and personality and self-belief is unique," Marsch said. "He's a very unique person and unique player."
Bombito was emphatic at Canada's training camp last month that he would "100 per cent" be ready for the opener.
"I've made a lot of progress," he said in Charlotte, N.C., on May 27. "I've just got to keep building."
Bombito was named to the initial roster and logged 31 minutes in a 2-0 friendly win over Uzbekistan on June 1 in Edmonton. After leaving the field, he was spotted icing the injured leg.
Marsch said at the time that Bombito experienced "sensitivity" from the lingering injury, and that he would be given every chance to recover.
The big defender was available off the bench when Canada, which is in Group B alongside the Bosnians, Switzerland and Qatar, drew Ireland 1-1 in a June 5 friendly in Montreal, but Luc de Fougerolles filled his spot in the starting lineup.
Marsch said the 20-year-old Englishman — eligible to play for Canada thanks to his Montreal-born father's lineage — first earned his teammates' trust at the Copa America in 2024 as part of the supporting cast.
"He had this drive and determination to learn, to adapt, to grow, and to show the team that he could be counted on," Marsch said. "We knew that we needed to develop some centre backs … I don't think we had any idea how important it was going to become.
"This kid doesn't stop. I had a feeling all along that Luc was going to find a way to get on the pitch for the World Cup. I just felt like it was going to be hard to keep him out of the team sheet. He's shown that, and he'll be ready for (Friday)."
Marsch had until 24 hours before Canada's opener to replace any seriously ill or injured players.
He had already scratched midfielder Marcelo Flores, who ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament May 30. Jayden Nelson was named to the roster in his absence.
"We are ready to play some big games," Marsch said. "We are ready to make our country proud, our fans proud.
"We are ready to go after this."
