CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Alfie Jones knows he could be in for a long night on Thursday.
The centre back is one of the 32 players at Canada’s pre-World Cup training camp in Charlotte, N.C., this week.
He’s hoping to hear his name called Friday when head coach Jesse Marsch will whittle the list to 26.
“I think you’ve just gotta try and keep busy, gotta try and take your mind off it, spend time with the guys. I think that’s all we can do,” Jones said of the wait.
“It’s gonna be a long wait, but it’s part of football, and Jesse obviously has the decisions to make, so we have to respect that.”
Nerves crackled beneath the surface as some of players headed into Thursday’s training session.
Even the athletes believed to be a lock for the squad feel the anticipation, said defender Derek Cornelius.
“It’s always a bit of a nervous feeling,” he said. “So many players would love to be in this position right now. So with those nerves, it’s a bit of a blessing as well that your name is going to be one of the ones considered in that selection.”
Several players vying to make the team are returning from injury, complicating Marsch’s decisions.
The coach said on Monday that this week’s training sessions would be about looking at where each athlete is in their return to full health, and how he needs to balance his roster to ensure there are contingency plans in place for every possible scenario.
“What we’re doing is putting everybody in the environment so they can prepare themselves mentally and physically for if they get the call,” he said.
“There’s a lot of injured players who, in a normal situation, we’d already have earmarked in the 26. But not knowing what it’ll look like in a week or not being able to fully predict in three weeks, we have to then, I think, have all plans in place for all players to be as prepared as possible.”
The 32-man roster includes both veterans such as Cornelius, who was with the national team in Qatar for the 2022 World Cup, and newcomers such as defender Luc de Fougerolles.
The 20-year-old centre back, who plays for Belgium’s FCV Dender, came to Charlotte looking to prove he deserves one of the 26 spots up for grabs, but is also working his way back from a concussion.
“I think I’m just excited, excited to see what team’s going to go to the World Cup,” he said. “I think the whole team’s excited to see who’s going to be going.”
Asked whether the looming cuts were interfering with his rest, Chicago Fire defender Joel Waterman laughed.
“I sleep good, I sleep good,” he said. “I’ve done everything I could up until this point to kind of earn my spot. And I can sleep easy at night, knowing I’ve done everything I could. So I’m just excited for them to announce it and see who made the final roster.”
Cutting down the roster isn’t easy, said Alistair Johnston.
The Celtic FC right back remembers how emotional decision day was ahead of Qatar.
“It was difficult for the guys who didn’t make it; it was difficult for the guys that did make it because they knew they were taking a spot and they would have to leave someone else at home,” he said.
“No matter what 26 names are called, everyone’s going to be cheering each other on. It’s the biggest sporting event that’s ever come to Canada, and we’re all just really excited, hoping to get our name called for that.”
Canada opens its World Cup campaign June 12 against Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto before heading to Vancouver for group-stage matches against Qatar on June 18 and Switzerland on June 24.
