Attention Canada Fans! Davies Returns to Training Ground; Tunisia’s World Cup Coach Sacked

Updated: 2026-06-19 | Real-time information is subject to official announcements

The morning bulletin that originally circulated about “Davies returning to the training ground” has actually reached a fuller conclusion now that the tournament is under way, and here we’ll lay it all out for Canada fans in one go. Alphonso Davies is the captain of this edition’s Canada squad. After tearing his cruciate ligament in the CONCACAF Nations League final this past March, he was sidelined for a long recovery, and last month he picked up a further muscle injury in Bayern Munich’s Champions League fixture, so he missed Canada’s World Cup opener. He returned to the training ground before the match and was listed as “available,” but he is still in the return-to-play process, so head coach Jesse Marsch took a cautious approach and did not start him.

As it turned out, Canada didn’t need him to carry the load and still wrote themselves into the history books. On June 18 at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada thrashed Qatar 6-0, with Jonathan David scoring a hat-trick, and Cyle Larin and Nathan Saliba also getting on the scoresheet, plus an own goal. This is the largest margin of victory by a CONCACAF team in the history of the men’s World Cup, and Canada are level on 4 points with Switzerland at the top of Group B. In other words, while Davies’s condition is certainly key, right now the team looks more like it is “saving his energy” for him, ready to let him go full throttle when the tough knockout battles arrive, which is rather something to look forward to.

As for the “Tunisia sacks its coach” mentioned in the draft, after verification it does indeed hold up, and it’s even more sensational than the bulletin made out. Tunisia were hammered 5-1 by Sweden in their Group F opener, and the federation promptly sacked Sabri Lamouchi, who had only taken charge this January, within less than 48 hours after the match — making him the first head coach of this World Cup to be dismissed during the tournament. Taking over is the experienced French manager Hervé Renard, who has arrived at the team’s base in Monterrey, Mexico, to lead training, with a contract running to the end of this tournament; his first match in charge is on June 21 (Saturday) against Japan. For Canada fans, this piece of news is actually a sidelong reminder: the World Cup moves at a relentless pace, and a single defeat can trigger a personnel earthquake.

To keep up to the minute with Canada’s upcoming schedule and broadcasts, check out our Canada broadcast rundown; for friends in Vancouver who want to watch at BC Place itself or at nearby sports bars, our Vancouver viewing guide also covers transport and dining. One old reminder: player injury status, coaching personnel and exact schedules are all subject to the official announcements of Canada Soccer, the Tunisian football federation and FIFA, and injury lists in particular are often only finalised right before kick-off.