Ahead of the impending CONCACAF Gold Cup, Canada get ready for continental competition with a strong roster as they meet Ukraine in a pre-tournament friendly, with another against Ivory Coast to come three days later.
While a few individuals are absent from Jesse Marsch’s side, he has all fit and available players on hand to contribute as Les Rouges gun for their first Gold Cup title since 2000.
Canada have not even reached the final of the tournament since that triumph 25 years ago, managing only one semifinal appearance in that span back in 2021.
Ukraine, meanwhile, are looking to prepare for UEFA World Cup qualifying, which begins for them in September with an imposing first fixture against France plus a follow-up against Azerbaijan.
MORE: A full breakdown of the USMNT roster for the 2025 Gold Cup, lacking many of its first-choice regulars
Canada vs. Ukraine starting lineups, team news
Marsch has called in a strong squad for the Gold Cup, and by proxy the pre-tournament friendlies, but he is missing a few key regulars along the back line.
Left out of the squad were Alistair Johnston, Moise Bombito, and Jonathan Osorio, who were all forced out of action due to end-of-season fitness concerns. Bombito had returned from wrist surgery to finish the campaign with his French club Nice, but because they have an early start to the 2025/26 campaign due to Champions League qualifying, he was given a rest.
Also not involved is Alphonso Davies, who tore his ACL back in mid-March and will be out of action for considerable time. Marsch must decide who to start in goal from game to game, as Dayne St. Clair and Maxime Crepeau continue to battle for the No. 1 shirt with veteran Milan Borjan phased out.
Marsch has rotated the squad for this first friendly, giving rare starts to youngsters Luc de Fougerolles, Niko Sigur, and Promise David.
Canada starting lineup (4-4-2, right to left): 16. Crepeau (GK) — 20. Sigur, 13. Cornelius, 15. de Fougerolles, 2. Bassong — 17. Buchanan, 19. Saliba, 7. Eustaquio, 14. Shaffelburg — 10. J. David, 24. P. David.
Full Canada squad
Goalkeepers: Dayne St. Clair, Maxime Crepeau
Defenders: Sam Adekugbe, Zorhan Bassong, Derek Cornelius, Luc de Fougerolles, Jamie Knight-Lebel, Richie Laryea, Joel Waterman
Midfielders: Ali Ahmed, Tajon Buchanan, Mathieu Choiniere, Stephen Eustaquio, Ismael Kone, Nathan Saliba, Niko Sigur, Jacob Shaffelburg
Forwards: Jonathan David, Promise David, Daniel Jebbison, Cyle Larin, Jayden Nelson, Tani Oluwaseyi.
It was a surprise to see Roma striker Artem Dovbyk not included in the Ukraine squad, having logged 12 goals in his first full Serie A season, but he was on the bench for the club’s final two matches of 2024/25 as he struggled with a reported muscle issue.
Thirty-five-year-old veteran Andriy Yarmolenko was also left out and will be unable to add to his 125 international caps, while Vitaliy Mykolenko was given rest at the end of a long and taxing Premier League campaign with Everton. Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk was also not included as he remains suspended pending the outcome of a doping investigation.
Ukraine have a pair of talented young players in Ilya Zabarnyi and Georgiy Sudakov, who have amassed a combined 75 international caps despite both being just 22 years old. Meanwhile, young Brentford midfielder Yegor Yarmolyuk could earn his third international cap after an impressive season in England.
Ukraine starting lineup (4-1-4-1, right to left): 12. Trubin (GK) — 5. Bondar, 13. Zabarnyi, 22. Matviyenko, 18. Tymchyk — 6. Kaliuzhnyi — 15. Tsigankov, 10. Shaparenko, 17. Zinchenko, 8. Sudakov — 9. Yaremchuk.
Full Ukraine squad
Goalkeepers: Andriy Lunin, Dmytro Riznyk, Anatoliy Trubin.
Defenders: Valeriy Bondar, Yevhen Cheberko, Oleksandr Martynyuk, Mykola Matviyenko, Bohdan Mykhaylichenko, Maksymm Talovyerov, Oleksandr Tymchyk, Ilya Zabarnyi, Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Midfielders: Arten Bondarenko, Oleksiy Hutsulyak, Vladyslav Kabayev, Ivan Kalyuzhnyi, Mykola Mykhaylenko, Yehor Nazaryna, Oleksandr Pikhalyonok, Mykola Shaparenko, Heorhiy Sudakov, Viktor Tsyhanokov, Yegor Yarmolyuk, Oleksandr Zubkov.
Forwards: Roman Yaremchuk.
Canada vs. Ukraine score prediction
Ukraine will provide a stiff test for Canada on Saturday, but they are missing a number of their most valuable stars, and with the European side potentially looking to experiment with fringe players ahead of UEFA World Cup qualifying, they could be out-matched.
Marsch has a strong roster to pull from, even in the absence of Davies. The head coach has done extremely well to make this squad capable of performing and achieving results in the absence of one or two key players, and they should manage to start the summer on a positive note.
Prediction: Canada 1-0 Ukraine
Canada vs. Ukraine live stream, TV channel
- Date: Saturday, June 7, 2025
- Time (ET): 3:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. PT
- TV channel: OneSoccer
- Streaming: Fubo Canada
This match will be televised in Canada on OneSoccer, which is available for streaming on Fubo Canada.
In addition to their two pre-tournament friendlies, the CONCACAF Gold Cup will also be available in Canada on OneSoccer, who are the home for the national team this summer.
