Crépeau returns home as Canada weighs No. 1 goalkeeper decision

MONTREAL — Maxime Crépeau is welcoming the fight as Canada coach Jesse Marsch weighs his decision on the country’s No. 1 goalkeeper.

He’s also relishing the chance to make his mark where it all began.

The No. 26 Canadian men host No. 25 Australia in a friendly Friday at Montreal’s Stade Saputo before facing Colombia on Tuesday in Harrison, N.J., to wrap up the October FIFA international window.

“It’s special for me personally to come back here, where I was born and raised and formed by this club,” the 31-year-old from nearby Candiac, Que., said at CF Montreal’s training facility this week. “I was with the goalkeepers, I was like, ‘Guys, this is all my youth, all I’ve known when I was growing up.'”

A longtime national team player and former Montreal academy product, Crépeau spent years waiting in the wings while Milan Borjan filled Canada’s starting role.

Now the Portland Timbers ‘keeper is battling Dayne St. Clair for the top job with the 2026 World Cup eight months away.

Marsch didn’t confirm Crépeau would start in front of his friends and family but said both he and St. Clair would each get a game.

Canada’s head coach has also said he hopes to choose his No. 1 soon and give that ‘keeper a run of games before the World Cup, meaning this window could be Crépeau and St. Clair’s last chance to stake their claim.

“We know exactly what’s at stake, and it’s all about performing at the end of the day,” Crépeau said. “For both of us, it has been great challenging one another.

“It shows that in our team at the moment, we have a lot of qualities in several positions. And nothing in life is given, frankly. Something major awaits us next summer and the competition is good … we have to work for it.”

Crépeau is on track for his first trip to the World Cup after missing out on the 2022 tournament with a broken leg while playing for LAFC in the MLS Cup final 18 days before Canada’s opening match against Belgium.

Fellow Portland ‘keeper James Pantemis is also in the squad this window, but Marsch has made it clear it’s a two-horse race.

“Dayne and Max, for me, have established themselves at a very high level with our national team,” Marsch said last week after Canada announced its October roster. “We will be continuing to evaluate those two and where everything stands, but we know that those two have really established themselves in our group as the main two goalkeepers.”

St. Clair was the starting goalie in this year’s MLS all-star game and leads the league in save percentage (78.80).

Crépeau, meanwhile, has been battling Pantemis for the starting job in Portland. Pantemis has played 18 regular-season games this season, while Crépeau has made 15 starts.

The Canadian men’s return to Montreal is a long time coming. The squad held a training camp in Montreal last year, but hasn’t played a match in the city since 2017.

Crépeau joined the then-called Montreal Impact’s academy in 2010 and became the MLS club’s fourth homegrown signing in 2013, but only appeared in three games between then and 2018 when he was traded to the Vancouver Whitecaps and took on the starting job.

He played for the Whitecaps from 2019 through 2021 before moving to LAFC for two seasons and joining Portland last year.

“It feels good to be back at home. Just speaking French feels weird sometimes, I’m so used to speaking English,” he said in his native language to a group of mostly French-Canadian reporters. “We are proud. The stadium will be full. It’s something special to have the opportunity to play, where we grew up, where we were trained.”

Crépeau is one of several players from Quebec who were named to the roster, including midfielders Mathieu Choinière, Ismaël Kone and Nathan Saliba. Marsch also selected defender Moïse Bombito, but the OGC Nice centre back suffered a fractured tibia before the window.

“It says a lot about some of the developments that have happened in terms of the grassroots of the game in Quebec and Montreal,” Marsch said.

Local fans won’t have to wait another eight years to see the Canadian men’s team. Canada will hold its final camp and exhibition match before the World Cup in early June.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2025.