Vancouver Whitecaps FC midfielder Simon Colyn is among 25 players invited to the Canada Under-17 national team's two-week camp in Montreal ahead of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil this fall.
Held from July 31-August 10 in Montreal, it is the first national team camp since the official draw, which saw Canada placed into the same group as the tournament hosts, whom they meet in the World Cup’s opening match Oct. 26, Angola and New Zealand.
“We have important work ahead of us in preparation for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil 2019, but we will also stay the course in developing our tactical ID,” said Andrew Olivieri, Canada Soccer’s Men’s EXCEL U-14 to U-17 Program Director in a statement. “The camp in Canada allows us to address the gaps we identified during our qualifying campaign while also assessing a few new players who have been impactful in their club environments. From here, the next few months will allow us to focus in on each opponent while certainly not looking past the incredible opportunity of an opening match against Brazil.”
Joining Colyn, the 17-year-old who signed a multi-year Homegrown Player contract with the Whitecaps last April, from the Whitecaps academy are central defenders Nathan Demian and Gianfranco Facchineri, fullback Deylen Vellios, midfielders Emiliano Brienza and Damiano Pecile and forward Kamron Habibullah.
Toronto FC’s Academy is well represented with goalkeeper Eleias Himaras, fullbacks Kobe Franklin and Rohan Goulbourne, midfielders Julian Altobelli, Deandre Kerr and Ralph Priso-Mbongue and forwards Jayden Nelson and Jacen Russell-Rowe.
From the Montreal Impact Academy are: Goalkeepers Benjamin Collins and Maxime Bourgeois, fullback Keesean Ferdinand, midfielders Matt Catavolo, Tomas Giraldo and Sean Rea and forwards Mouhamadou Kane and Jérémie Omeonga Nkoy.
