Alphonso Davies Siap Bela Kanada di Babak 32 Besar Piala Dunia 2026

Bek kiri Alphonso Davies dipastikan siap memperkuat tim nasional Kanada saat menghadapi Afrika Selatan pada babak 32 besar Piala Dunia 2026 di Stadion Los Angeles, Amerika Serikat. Kepastian ini disampaikan langsung oleh pelatih kepala Kanada, Jesse Marsch, setelah Davies absen di tiga pertandingan fase grup akibat cedera hamstring.

Kehadiran pemain berusia 25 tahun yang telah mencetak 15 gol dari 58 penampilan sejak debut internasionalnya pada 2017 ini dinilai akan mendongkrak moral tim yang baru pertama kali lolos ke fase gugur Piala Dunia.

"Now that we have Alphonso back and healthy and ready to perform, I think it's a big moment for the team and a big boost for the team," kata Marsch.

Marsch menjelaskan bahwa mayoritas pemain yang sempat mengalami cedera ringan saat memasuki pemusatan latihan kini sudah mendekati kondisi kebugaran penuh. "I think in general, all the players that came into camp with little injuries are now close to 100% and ready to perform at the highest level and be at our best in these matches," tuturnya.

Ia juga menegaskan tidak ingin terburu-buru memaksakan pemulihan Davies demi menjaga karier jangka panjang sang pemain, meskipun keputusan memarkirnya di fase grup terasa berat. "For me to go tell our best player, and a guy that is a huge piece of everything that we do, that we have to wait, was also painful," tambah Marsch.

Keputusan tersebut diambil agar Davies bisa berada dalam kondisi puncak saat Kanada mengarungi babak sistem gugur, setelah mereka kehilangan status tuan rumah akibat kekalahan dari Swiss. "But we've done this in the best interests of Alphonso and his career and his health, so it's nice now that we can have a plan that leads to him being back on the pitch," jelas Marsch.

Di sisi lain, Davies mengapresiasi pendekatan emosional yang dilakukan sang pelatih terhadap penanganan cederanya, meskipun ia sempat frustrasi hanya menonton dari pinggir lapangan. "Obviously, it was painful. The only thing you want to do is play football. That's what I'm really passionate about," ujar Davies.

Davies mengaku hasratnya untuk turun ke lapangan terus meningkat sejak pertandingan pertama hingga laga ketiga fase grup. "The first game, watching it, I was eager to be on the pitch. Second game, even more so," ucapnya. Ia bahkan sempat meminta waktu bermain kepada Marsch sebelum pertandingan ketiga. "The third game, I went to him before the game and asked him, 'Do you think I can get a couple of minutes?'," ungkapnya.

Pemain Bayern Munich itu menyadari bahwa keputusan Marsch untuk menahannya adalah bentuk kepedulian terhadap kondisi fisik dan masa depannya. "He could have said, 'Yeah, we'll just throw you in there,' but obviously he cares about me and the team as human beings as well, so he sat me down, and I thought about it, and I said, 'He's right.' It was kind of hard to hear," kata Davies.

Pertandingan ini menjadi momen emosional bagi Davies karena ia sempat menderita cedera lutut parah di stadion yang sama pada Maret 2025 dalam ajang CONCACAF Nations League. "Could have happened anywhere. Coming back to the stadium, I get to finish something I started a year ago in March," pungkasnya.

Laga ini juga mencatat sejarah baru sejak Piala Dunia 2002 sebagai pertemuan dua tim yang sama-sama baru pertama kali merasakan atmosfer babak gugur Piala Dunia. "I really enjoy playing in this stadium. The first time, it was beautiful. It was cut short, but that happens. It's football," tutup Davies.