Toronto FC's Jacob Shaffelburg, left, battles with FC Cincinnati's Edgar Castillo in Toronto on Sept. 29, 2021.MARK BLINCH/The Canadian Press
Winger Jacob Shaffelburg, who has turned heads in recent games with Toronto FC, has been called up by Canada for its next batch of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying matches.
The 21-year-old from Port Williams, N.S., joins a 27-man squad that features Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Jonathan David (Lille), Milan Borjan (Red Star Belgrade), Stephen Eustaquio (FC Pacos de Ferreira) and Atiba Hutchinson and Cyle Larin (both Besiktas).
Shaffelburg, a pacey attacker who likes to take on defenders, scored one goal and set up the other two in Toronto’s 3-2 comeback win over FC Cincinnati on Wednesday. He has two goals and four assists in his last four games for Toronto.
Shaffelburg, who has one senior cap to his credit, joins Derek Cornelius (13 caps) and Charles-Andreas Brym (three caps) as first-time call-ups during this World Cup qualifying cycle.
Cornelius is currently with Greece’s Panetolikos, on loan from the Vancouver Whitecaps. Brym plays for FC Eindhoven in the Netherlands.
Canada (1-0-2) stands second in the octagonal round-robin standings on goal difference with five points, after defeating El Salvador and tying Honduras and the U.S.
The 51st-ranked Canadian men play at No. 9 Mexico (2-0-1) on Oct. 7 and at No. 59 Jamaica (0-2-1) on Oct 10 before hosting No. 68 Panama (1-0-2) at Toronto’s BMO Field on Oct. 13
“We have three tough matches including back-to-back road matches in altitude and then heat, but we want these tests, and the team is ready for them,” Canada coach John Herdman said in a statement. “The team will enjoy the match in Azteca [Stadium in Mexico City], it’s a great arena for any footballer to play and we are looking forward to meet the Mexicans again following our recent CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-final match.
“It’s a quick turnaround to play against a very talented Jamaican squad, before coming home to play Panama and with our fans behind us, it’s a great way to finish the window.”
Each of the eight teams plays 14 matches in the final round of qualifying, with the top three representing North and Central America and the Caribbean at Qatar 2022, The fourth-place team will take part in an intercontinental playoff to see who joins them.
It’s the first time the Canadian men have reached the final round of CONCACAF qualifying since the leadup to France ‘98.
Canada won its first-round group, defeating Aruba, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands and Suriname, before dispatching Haiti in a two-legged second round.
Canada’s first two home games of the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, against Honduras and El Salvador in September, were played in Toronto with BMO Field also set to host Panama on Oct. 13.
Canada Soccer says its two November home matches – Nov. 12 against No. 44 Costa Rica (0-1-2) and Mexico on Nov. 16 – will be played at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium.