From being born in Brooklyn to growing up in Ottawa, David has been part of the Canadian program for almost a decade. He rose alongside Alphonso Davies through the youth national teams and eventually made his Canada debut in 2018 alongside Larin.
Since turning professional, David has played with Davies many times. The connection with Larin, though, blossomed on and off the pitch for most of their time together until the recent struggles in 2025.
Through 2023 and 2024, they co-hosted a podcast, “The Strikers’ Corner,” and before that had formed a potent partnership that propelled Canada through 2022 World Cup qualifying and into the country’s first tournament in 36 years.
The two embody Canada Soccer’s rise and its previous failures, with Canada ranked No. 110 when Larin debuted in 2014. Both have had to deal with judgments directed at them as Canadians in Europe and, as the game has grown, with public opinion at home. Through it all, their friendship has grown despite their competing for spots in the past.
Larin, a more physical striker with an eye for goal, and David, often lauded as one of the smartest players in the game, had grown to complement each other before changing roles in Marsch’s 4-4-2 system, which brought defensive solidity but left their goals largely dry.
“The podcast was fun… life got too busy,” David told OneSoccer in a dual interview with Larin in March. “It’s been a long time that we’ve played together, so I think we’re starting again to find each other a little bit more, but we just had that click before that, and it was just automatic.”
Now it’s about finding that connection again. Larin’s resurgence could be the key, and despite their struggles to create alongside each other in 2025, they could partner again against Qatar, with hopes of David finding his first World Cup goal to spark Canada’s momentum.
