Following his brush with the law, Orlando City forward Cyle Larin has been welcomed back into the Canadian national team fold.
Larin has been recalled by Canadian coach Octavio Zambrano for the knockout phase of the CONCACAF Gold Cup after the Reds finished second in Group A behind Costa Rica to qualify for the next round.
Canada meets Jamaica in the quarter-finals on Thursday.
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Under Gold Cup rules, teams are allowed to make six roster changes upon the completion of the group stage and prior to the start of the knockout round. Larin replaces youngster Raheem Edwards, who will now return to Toronto FC and be available for their road game in Major League Soccer against New York City on Wednesday.
Larin, a 22-year-old native of Brampton, Ont., was arrested last month in Florida on a drunk driving charge. As a result, Zambrano left the Canadian forward off his initial 23-man roster for the Gold Cup as he went through Major League Soccer’s Substance Abuse and Behavioural Health program. Larin missed three games for Orlando while completing the program.
The day before the arrest, Larin earned his 20th cap for Canada in a 2-1 win over Curacao in a friendly staged in Montreal.
A former No. 1 draft pick and MLS rookie of the year, Larin is considered one of Canada’s top players, scoring 39 goals in 70 regular-season games for Orlando since coming into the league in 2015. He has eight goals in 17 matches this season.
However, he hasn’t been able to duplicate that form while playing for Canada, scoring just five times in 20 appearances since making his national team debut in 2014 while he was still in university.
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