The Canada players who edged out South Africa with an injury-time goal in the Los Angeles Stadium last Sunday afternoon were given Tuesday off by their manager Jesse Marsch this week.
Having won their country’s first World Cup knockout round match ever and recorded only their second victory in the international competition, Alphonso Davies and his team mates were entitled to a little down time.
Yet, for Ewan Sharp, the Stirling-born Scot who has been one of the tournament co-hosts’ assistant coaches during these finals, there was no respite.
Marsch flew from California down to Mexico following the South Africa game so he could take in the last 32 encounter between the Netherlands and Morocco in the Estadio Monterrey in Guadalupe on Monday evening in person.
After watching the formidable African Cup of Nations champions come from behind and defeat their feted European rivals in a penalty shootout, he was keen for his trusted lieutenant to begin the build-up to their last 16 tie straight away.
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“The rest of the guys are off today, but it’s going to a busy one for me,” said Sharp during a transatlantic WhatsApp call. “I was just on the phone with Jesse there. He was debriefing me on what he saw last night. I have to get through the match preparation plan today.”
It was, though, no hardship. Seeing Scotland compete in their first World Cup in 28 years was, despite their disappointing early exit, emotional for every Tartan Army footsoldier.
Actually being involved in the finals in a professional capacity has been an incredible experience for one of their countrymen.
The former Stirling Albion and East Stirlingshire youth player has worked at a high level in the game as both an analyst and a coach since graduating with a BA in Business Sports Management from Mercyhurst University in Pennsylvania in the United States.
His dedication and knowledge impressed Ralf Rangnick during his time with MLS franchise New York Red Bulls and the renowned German coach made him a key member of his backroom team when he was the manager at both Lokomotiv Moscow and Manchester United.
Sharp then joined Marsch, who had stints in charge of the Red Bull teams in New York, Salzburg and Leipzig, at Leeds United and when the American moved on and took over at Canada two years ago he followed him.
He has not had cause to regret his decision. He has savoured being in the dugout during the Group B matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto and Qatar and Switzerland in Vancouver as well as the last 32 game against South Africa in Los Angeles.
“It is a home World Cup for us and the energy and excitement in the cities and in the stadiums has been amazing,” he said. “The guys have been playing this sport their whole lives. But in their own country they’re not stars because ice hockey players are far bigger names. To have such a high level of interest has been great. We’ve fed off that.
“There have been a lot of people out wearing red Canada tops and that is not normal for this part of the world. Football is getting bigger and bigger over here and I believe the World Cup is going to have a massive impact on the popularity of the sport going forward.
“At the same time, there has definitely been pressure on us to do well too. In our friendlies at the end of last year, we were really going at games and playing with a lot of freedom, confidence and courage. The focus there has been on us in the last few weeks has maybe made us a little bit more cautious than normal.
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“I actually don’t think we’ve played our best football yet even though we are through to the last 16. Our big message to the players ahead of Morocco will be to be brave, to be aggressive and to play free. It's amazing for us to be in this moment, but we want to keep going. We should feel like we can just go for it. We have nothing to lose really.”
Sharp continued, “I’m responsible for opponent analysis and match planning. We all contribute to that, but I'm the person who pulls together the video clips we want to show the team and who shapes the message we want to give.
“I present my ideas on how I think we should play to Jesse and the rest of the staff. We’ll then try to poke holes in the ideas I bring to the table. Once we’re all aligned on what we want to do, I help to create and deliver the message to the players. I help with the training sessions as well, but that is what distinguishes my role from the others.”
Sharp revealed he has been in touch with members of the Scotland backroom team since Canada found out they were going to be facing Morocco in the last 16 and he is hopeful his compatriots’ insight into the Group C runners-up will prove to be beneficial in the Houston Stadium today.
“It was really weird being involved in the World Cup while Scotland were playing,” he said. “It was hard for me to sit down and watch their matches. To be honest, I only saw bits and pieces of their games. But I had a call with some SFA staff after Morocco got through and they gave me their thoughts which I was grateful for.
“I had been in regular contact with Mark McKenna, their performance analysis manager, before the tournament. He wanted to know about the landscape over here and where I would recommend they train. When Morocco got through, I reached out to him and said, ‘We would appreciate anything you have that can help us’.”
So does he think Canada, who have drawn with Bosnia, thrashed Qatar, lost narrowly to Switzerland and beaten South Africa, can fare better than his homeland did against the Qatar 2022 semi-finalists in Houston today? He is well aware it will be the biggest challenge they have faced to date.
“They're athletic, they're well organised, they want to have the ball,” he said. “You could see that in the game on Monday night. It was hot in Monterrey and I think that zapped the energy from the Netherlands. In the second half and extra-time, they were really on the back foot. Morocco had all the ball and were constantly probing them.
“Morocco as a team have just got stronger and stronger over the last few years. They have got more and more quality into the team. Young players have come through who are really interesting footballers and are ready to become superstars.
“They have maybe not got the reputation of some of the big European and South American countries which have won the tournament. But they're right up there amongst those teams in my opinion. They're that good. We know that we're going to have our hands full. It's going to be really difficult to play against this team.
“But we also know that we pose a threat and can challenge them with our strengths. My focus will be figuring out how to maximise our strengths, how to nullify their strengths, how to give ourselves opportunities to utilise our weapons as often as possible.”
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One of their potent weapons is Alastair Johnston. The Celtic right-back spent the majority of the 2025/26 season sidelined with a hamstring injury that ultimately required surgery. But he made his comeback in April, helped the Parkhead club do an improbable double and has been in sparkling form at the World Cup.
“Alastair is back to his best,” said Sharp. “He has been really sharp. He is always looking for the ball, always ready to defend aggressively. He has been at the World Cup before and it shows that he has that experience. He is an infectious character as well. You could argue he has been our best player at this tournament.”
There were some concerns in the Canada camp earlier this year about the condition that Derek Cornelius, the Marseille centre half who spent last season on loan at Rangers, would be in when the finals got underway.
The defender had a spell out injured and did not play for the Ibrox first team when he returned to full fitness. He complained about being forced to train with the academy kids at Auchenhowie and of being “disrespected” by manage Danny Rohl. But he has started in all four World Cup games and acquitted himself superbly.
“In the past six months, multiple things haven’t gone our way,” said Sharp. “Alastair was out, Alphonso was sidelined, Moise (Bombito) was recovering from a broken leg, Alfie (jones) got an injury and Derek's situation wasn’t ideal either. Our whole back line has not had the preparation that you would want.
“Danny Rohl decided the other centre-backs at Rangers were ahead of Derek, that he wanted to go with some of the younger players in his position. Derek was on loan and I think that was a factor as well. It didn't go the way that he wanted and that we wanted.
“The weird thing about being a national team coach is you spend a lot of time watching games, watching what's going on with your players. They're picking up little injuries, they're not starting, they're not playing.
“But you can't do anything about it. You just have to sit there, watch it unfold and then do what you can when you get your opportunity to work with them. That's exactly what we've done. We just figured out how to get the right messages in to those guys who had issues and then maximise our time with them when we came together.
“Derek’s attitude when he came in with us was great. We had him in the March window and he played well. We managed to get him in early with us before the tournament when we were training in Charlotte. We worked closely with him and built up his fitness and sharpness.
“He's been good for us during our time. He has been solid. He is a guy we can rely on. He came in hungry and knowing that this is a big opportunity for him. It's going to be an important moment in his career. He knew that if he came in and played well it will have an impact on what's next for him. He's looked as fit and as sharp as he ever has for us.”
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Reaching the last 16 of the World Cup has been a remarkable accomplishment for Canada considering that Davies, the Bayern Munich left-back who is considered by many to be the best player on the planet in his specialist position, missed all three group games. He was still recovering from the hamstring injury he picked up in the Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain in May.
Sharp was delighted when their captain came on in the second half of the South Africa match and is hopeful that he will be able to feature once again against Morocco today.
“Alphonso is a top player, our best player on his day,” he said. “We've not had him for the last year, which has been disappointing and obviously hasn't helped our preparations. But it's meant that we've had to figure out how to play without him. It would have been tougher to lose him right before the start of the tournament.
“But now he's back. He’s getting back up to speed, getting back up to match sharpness, building up his fitness levels. It was great to have him in the squad for the game against South Africa and to get him on to the pitch.
“This week is about building him up, making sure he's fresh and ready for the next one. But it is also about how we can sharpen him up to our way of playing because obviously we play in a different way to Bayern Munich. We have to integrate him into what we do.
“That's probably been the hardest thing about this World Cup. We've had a year now where he's not been a part of what we've been doing in training and games. We have to understand how to maximise his strengths and he has to understand how to fit into what we do. But it's definitely a good situation to have him back.”
Sharp was devastated when Scotland failed to progress to the knockout rounds as one of the eight best third-placed teams. However, he suspected that his national team may struggle to get through when they were drawn in the same section as Morocco and Brazil back in December.
“Before the draw was made we identified Morocco as the toughest Pot 2 team,” he said. “Scotland got them and Brazil. So right away I thought, ‘Those are two extremely difficult opponents’.
“I stay down in Fort Lauderdale now and so I also knew that playing their last game in Miami would be hot and physically demanding. It's an open stadium, it's not temperature-controlled. Being based over here, I think I recognised just how hard it would be. Fans looking in from the outside maybe didn’t fully appreciate the challenge of all that.
“But having my team in a World Cup again definitely made me proud. I think it is something that we should look to build on so we can keep developing as a football nation.”
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Sharp continued, “Seeing the positive impression that all of the Scotland fans made when they were in Boston and Miami made me proud as well. My uncle Alan and cousin Nick came across and they shared photos and messages about what was going on.
“So I definitely got a feel for what was happening. At the same time, I was focusing on what I was doing with Canada and did have to block a lot of it out. I wasn’t living it the way I would have been if I hadn’t been working at the World Cup.”
But the fact that he is one of just two Scots who is involved in the World Cup knockout rounds – Austin MacPhee, the Portugal assistant coach, is the other one – is not lost on the former Wallace High School pupil.
“You do try to make things feel as normal as they are when you're in any other kind of camp and playing any other kind of game,” said Sharp. “You do say, ‘This is just my job’. You do try to exude calm. But obviously it feels different as well.
“My parents came over and I was able to pick them, my wife Lexi and our baby daughter Isla out in the stands after the win over Qatar. That was quite emotional. I think that is when it hit me what I have done, the journey I have been on and the support I have had to get me where I am. I know I am very lucky.”
Sharp has ambitions to move into management himself one day. But at the moment he is relishing working under Marsch and with the Canada players at the World Cup. He is hoping they can pull off a major upset against Morocco in the Houston Stadium and make it through to the quarter-finals.
“I didn't think we played our best game against South Africa,” he said. “We could have been sharper. But it was a World Cup knockout game and was the first time we had been in that situation. We left it late, but I think we were deserving winners.
“Jesse is an infectious person. He has a big personality and he commands a room when he is in front of it. I've also never been a part of a group of players who like being around each other and are so together as this group. That can take you a long way.”
