Osorio, Shaffelburg injured as Canada faces Guatemala in Nations League

TORONTO — Midfielders Jonathan Osorio and Jacob Shaffelburg will miss Canada’s CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Guatemala after picking up injuries in the final week of the Major League Soccer regular season.

Defender Zorhan Bassong and forwards Charles-Andreas Brym and Theo Corbeanu were added to the roster. Canada Soccer announced the moves in a release Monday.

Injury details were not provided for Osorio, who played 89 minutes in Toronto’s 4-1 season-ending loss at Philadelphia on Saturday. He missed time earlier in the MLS season with a knee injury.

Shaffelburg left Los Angeles FC’s 2-1 loss to Seattle on Saturday in the 79th minute after sustaining an injury as a result of a hard tackle.

Osorio, who has 10 goals in 92 appearances with the men’s national team, and Shaffelburg, who has eight goals in 39 games, were named to the squad when Canada announced its initial roster for the upcoming competition window last Tuesday.

Corbeanu, Osorio’s teammate at TFC, has two goals in seven international games since his 2021 debut. Bassong, who plays for Sporting Kansas City, has won eight caps since making his senior team debut in 2020. Brym, who plays in the Netherlands with NAC Breda, also made his senior international debut in 2020 and has one goal in 13 games.

Captain Alphonso Davies is expected to play in the series against Guatemala. He played limited minutes in just one game at this summer’s World Cup as he recovered from a hamstring injury. He then missed the nation’s three friendlies in late September and early October for his honeymoon.

But the squad was already dealing with a rash of injuries before Monday’s roster changes, including Swansea City midfielder Stephen Eustáquio, Southampton striker Cyle Larin, Marseille centre back Derek Cornelius, Middlesbrough centre back Alfie Jones and Celtic right back Alistair Johnston.

Canada, currently ranked 27th in the world, will visit No. 95 Guatemala to open the two-legged series on Nov. 13 before hosting the second leg at Toronto’s BMO Field on Nov. 16.

Canada Soccer will honour former national-team midfielder Julian de Guzman at halftime in Toronto in recognition of his induction into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as part of its class of 2026.

De Guzman made 89 international appearances from 2002 to 2016 and was named MVP of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The winner of the Canada-Guatemala series earns a spot in the CONCACAF Nations League Finals in Los Angeles in March 2027 and qualifies for the 2027 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The loser will play in the Gold Cup preliminary round.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2026.