Davies was still in Germany receiving treatment for a hamstring strain sustained while playing with Bayern Munich against Hertha Berlin nearly two weeks ago.Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion delivered straight to your inbox at 7 a.m., Monday to Friday.By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails.
“Phonzie is en route to join us and we’ll assess him as soon as he arrives to see if we can get him up to top speed,” Herdman said. “Progressively, we’ll just see how that one goes. Tonight, we showed we have the spirit, the collectiveness to have a next-man-up, but we also know there is only one Alphonso Davies and we’re really keen to get him back.”
The question is whether Herdman is prepared to risk Davies against Belgium with crucial matches against Croatia and Morocco on the cards to follow. Conventional wisdom dictates Canada has a better chance to earn results against an aging Croatia side, whose best player is 37, or Morocco than it does against the powerhouse Belgium.FEELING GOOD HEADING TOWARD OPENER
Japan took a two-goal lead in the second half before Belgium scored twice to tie it and then won it at the death on a counterattack off a Japan corner. Canada did well to beat Japan and look as ready as they’re ever going to be heading into the World Cup.