Alphonse Davies: The Most Popular Canadian Footballer

Alphonse Davies is a typical example of the modern fullback. He is a blend of athleticism, trickery, attacking prowess and wicked delivery. At a relatively young age, he has already won everything that continental club football has to offer.

Davies continues to be one of the more followed players and an inspiration to children everywhere. His philanthropic acts continues to help refugees across the globe. Join us as Footballers’ Biographies unveil the rise of Alphonse Davies, from war refugee to global icon.

Player Profile – Alphonse Davies

Alphonso Boyle Davies is a professional soccer player who plays for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and the Canadian national team. He is the youngest player to play for the Canadian national team and is highly rated as one of the best modern full-backs in the world.

Despite his young career, pundits regard him as one of the best North American players ever. He is fondly called the “The Roadrunner” by fans and the media for his explosive pace, agility and dribbling ability.

Davies was the first player born in the 2000s to play in a Major League Soccer match, he has also won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season. In his exciting career, he has won the sextuple in European football. Alphonse Davies was once among the top 3 wonderkids of world football.

Alphonse Davies has broken records in the ULS, CONCACAF and the Bundesliga. He scored Canada’s first-ever and is widely regarded as the best player and the face of the Canada national team.

Alongside national teammate Jonathan David, the most expensive Canadian footballer, they are lifting Canada to greater heights on the footballing stage.

Player Profile Overview

The Early Life of Alphonse Davies

Alphonse Davies was born to Liberian parents. His parents Debeah Davies and Victoria Davies fled Monrovia, during the civil war in their home country. They settled in Buduburam, a refugee camp in Ghana. Davies is the fourth child of the Davies’ household out of their six children.

The Davies family emigrated to Canada In 2005, the family emigrated to Canada and settled in the city of Edmonton. Alphonse Davies moved to Vancouver to join the Whitecaps FC Residency program at the age of 14.

He attended Burnaby Central Secondary School and officially became a Canadian citizen in 2017. Afterwards, he attended St Nicholas Catholic Junior High in Edmonton.

Davies’ first foray into organized soccer was with Free Footie. It was an after-school soccer league for inner-city elementary school students. It targeted students who cannot afford registration fees and equipment to join a football team. It also provided a platform for kids who could not pay for their transportation to games.

Alphonse Davies’ Style of Play

Davies is an explosive player in a similar mould with the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Marcus Rashford and Neymar. Although he primarily plays as the modern attacking full-back, Alphonse Davies can effortlessly play all positions across the left flank of the pitch.

Alphonse utilizes his explosive pace, dribbling, creativity, and crossing ability, to make dangerous overlapping runs to serve as an attacking threat. His pace and footballing intelligence allow him to diligently perform his defensive duties while creating assists further up the pitch.

Just like every other explosive player, Davies can ghost past defenders on the half turn, a drop of the shoulder and in some cases sudden bursts of speed. Furthermore, he uses hesitation on the run to confuse opponents and give dangerous passes on the go. Despite his explosiveness, he is able to retain control of his play and the ball.

Youth Career

From 2015-2016 Alphonse Davies was a member of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency. He joined them at the age of 14 and quickly impressed coaches with his speed, skill, and vision on the field.

He progressed to the Whitecaps’ U-16 team in 2016 and was instrumental in helping them win the USSDA U-16 Championship in 2017. Davies’ rapid rise continued as he was promoted to the Whitecaps’ U-18 team. He continued to excel and his performances earned him a call-up to the Canadian U-17 national team.

Senior Career

Alphonse Davies started his senior career with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2. He was part of the squad for the Vancouver Whitecaps FC’s 2016 MLS preseason tour, after which he signed with Whitecaps FC 2 in the USL. He became the youngest professional player in USL contract at 15 years, 3 months.

Two months later, Davies became the youngest debutant when he made his professional debut for Whitecaps FC 2. The following month, Alphonse Davies scored his professional goal to become the youngest goal scorer in USL history. However, that record was broken four years later.

The Step-Up to Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Alphonse Davies was promoted to the Whitecaps senior squad for the 2016 Canadian Championship on a short-term basis. His first team debut came in the first leg of the Canadian Championship against Ottawa Fury FC, and by the time the second leg came around, Davies was named as part of the starting eleven.

Alphonse Davies signed a first-team contract with the Whitecaps until 2018, with two-year options for 2019 and 2020. He became the the youngest active player in Major League Soccer, and the third youngest player to sign an MLS contract.

Davies became one of the youngest players to make their MLS debut on July 16, 2016, only behind Freddy Adu. He scored his first senior goal in the 2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League against Sporting Kansas City. Alphonse Davies’ goal in injury time sent his club through to the competition’s knockout phase.

The following season, Alphonse Davies played in both legs in the quarter-finals against New York Red Bulls, scoring in a 2-0 win over New York Red Bulls. He also played in both legs of the semi-finals against Tigres UANL losing 4-1 on aggregate.

Attracting Interests From Europe’s Biggest Clubs

Davies’s impressive performance in the MLS and CONCACAF appearances attracted interest from Europe’s elite clubs. It included the likes of Barcelona, Madrid, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool who sent their scouts to watch him.

He continued to impress in the MLS scoring his first MLS goal in the  2018 season opener against the Montreal Impact. Davies also provided an assist in the match. Alphonse Davies delivered a memorable performance against Orlando City as he scored one goal and created 3 assists in a 5-2 win.

Davies topped that by scoring two goals and providing two assists as Vancouver Whitecaps FC defeated Minnesota United 4-2 in the MLS. His performances saw him get for the MLS All-Star squad.

Alphonse Davies won the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Player of the Year Award and also won the Vancouver Whitecaps FC’s Goal of the Year award. Before departing for Bayern Munich Davies scored a brace in his final game for Vancouver. The goals help them win 2-1 against Portland Timbers in the MLS.

Alphonse David’s Move To Bayern Munich

After his last game against Portland Timbers, Alphonse Davis completed his US$13.5 million move to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich. Although terms had been agreed upon, Bayern agreed to let Davies finish the 2018 MLS season with Vancouver Whitecaps, before Die Bayern in January 2019.

Davies made his debut in the Telekom Cup championship finale against Borussia Mönchengladbach. His Bayern career got off to a start as they won on penalties after the game ended 0-0. Davies made his Bundesliga debut against VfB Stuttgart as a substitute for Kingsley Coman in a 3–1 victory.

Alphonse Davies became the first Canadian to score for Bayern Munich when he scored the last goal in a 6–0 rout of Mainz 05. He became the youngest player since Roque Santa Cruz, to score for the club. However, that record has been smashed by Mathys Tel, who scored at the age of just 17.

In his debut season, Davies won his first Bundesliga title. Bayern Munich finished the season two points above Der Klassiker rivals Dortmund with 78 points. Although he was not part of the match-day squad, Davies won his first DFB-Pokal title as Bayern won the DFB-Pokal Final 3-0 against RB Leipzig.

Global Acclaim and Topping the Speed Charts in the Bundesliga

Alphonse Davies made his first Bundesliga start with Bayern on matchday nine of the 2019–20 Bundesliga season against Union Berlin. Subsequently, his first start in the UEFA Champions League followed in a 2–0 victory against Olympiacos.

During the  2019-20 season, due to long-term injuries to Niklas Sule and Lucas Hernandez, Davies was shifted to play at left-back allowing David Alaba to deputise at centre-back.

Then Bayern manager, Niko Kovac praised Davies’ performance in that role. Fans and media recognised his ability, which earned him a reputation as one of the best left-backs in the world.

After Davies set up Robert Lewandowski‘s goal in a 3–0 away win over Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League, his stock soared. Media pundit Gary Lineker commented that Davies played beautifully and former U.S. international Stuart Holden described him as a world-class left-back.

In April 2020, Davies extended his contract to 2025 and after the restart of the Bundesliga due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he continued to impress. One performance of note was against Dortmund when Davies ran down Dortmund’s Erling Haaland, reaching a top speed of 35.3 kilometres per hour. He also scored and assisted against Eintracht Frankfurt.

Davies broke the record for the fastest speed clocked in the Bundesliga. Alphonse Davies reached the top speed of 36.51 kilometres per hour. The Canadian won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year award for the 2019–20 season.

Winning More than the Treble Titles with Bayern Munich

Davies started in their title-winning game for Bayern against Werder Bremen which they won 1–0. The victory secured Bayern Munich’s eighth consecutive league title.

Alphonse Davies impressed in the later stages of the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League from the left-back position. He was impressive in the 8-2 demolition of Lionel Messi and Barcelona in the quarter-finals. Davies’ assist for Joshua Kimmich’s goal in the march garnered rave reviews.

Alphonse Davies became the first Canadian to win the UEFA Champions League when Bayern Munich beat PSG 1–0 courtesy of a Kingsley Coman goal. Their triumphs in the Champions League, Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal in the 2019-20 season meant Alphonse Davies and his teammates had achieved a continental treble.

Davies alongside his Bayern teammates won the sextuple of European football when they won the UEFA Super Cup, FIFA World Club Cup and DFL-Supercup in 2020.

His impressive performances for Bayern and Canada saw Davies finish in third place for the 2020 Golden Boy Award, behind Erling Haaland and Ansu Fati.

Alphonse Davies’ Injuries and Reaching 100 Bundesliga Appearance

After winning the sextuple, Alphonse Davies suffered a series of injuries that affected his playing time with Bayern Munchen.  He injured his ankle and was forced off in the third minute of the match against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. Davies was sidelined for approximately 2 months after sustaining the injury.

Alphonse Davies also missed some game time after testing positive for COVID-19, and it was later discovered he had developed mild myocarditis. He suffered a cranial bruise in a Bundesliga tie against Dortmund, after taking a boot to the face in a challenge with Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham.

However, Davies was still able to make his 100th Bundesliga appearance for Bayern. He became the youngest non-German to reach this milestone which came in Bayern’s 2–1 home victory over VfB Stuttgart.

International career

Alphonse Davies was eligible to play for Canada, Ghana and Liberia. Consequently, Davies was called up several times to the Canadian U15s and U18s in 2014 and 2015. He also received call-ups to the U20s, and he was invited to play in a friendly match against the English U20 in March 2016.

His score for the U17s against Jamaica In November 2016, Davies attended a Canada under-17 camp, where he scored against Jamaica.

Subsequently, Alphonse Davies was named the 2016 Canada U17 Male Player of the Year due to his performances. In 2017, Davies won the Canada under-17 Male Player of the Year for a second consecutive time. time due to his performances with the senior team.

Alphonse Davies’ Senior International Career

Alphonse Davies made his national team senior debut for Canada in the friendly against Curaçao aged 16, becoming the youngest player to make his debut for the Canadian national team.

Davies made his Gold Cup debut against French Guiana in the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He scored two goals against them in the first match of the tournament. His goals against French Guiana made him the youngest goalscorer and also the youngest to score a brace in Gold Cup history.

Although Canada lost in the quarter-finals against Jamaica in the tournament, Davies won the Golden Boot. He was also named the Young Player of the Tournament and made the 2017 Gold Cup Best XI.

Davies was called up for two 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League A matches against Cuba, and he scored the decisive goal in the second match in a 1–0 victory for Canada.

Alphonse Davies was instrumental in leading Canada to their first win over the United States of America in 34 years. The left-back scored the opening goal of their 2-0 victory in the CONCACAF Nations League match.

Missing the Gold Cup

The Canadians suffered a blow to their 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup campaign when Davies suffered an ankle injury two days before Canada’s opening match. The injury ruled him out of the tournament as Canada made it to the semi-finals before losing 2-1 to Mexico.

Davies scored an amazing solo goal during a World Cup qualifying match against Panama. He ran 80 yards to keep the ball in play, reaching a top speed of 37.1 km/h before scoring. Alphonse Davies played a pivotal role in Canada’s World Cup qualification campaign, but he missed the final two international duties due to mild myocarditis.

He supported the team from the sidelines by running livestream Twitch commentaries on the remaining games. Davies’ commentaries attracted media attention, especially his reaction to the 4–0 victory over Jamaica that meant Canada had qualified for the global showpiece for only the second time.

Playing in the CONCACAF Nations League

Alphonse Davies was called up to the Canada squad for two CONCACAF Nations League matches and a friendly.[109] In the June 9 game against Curaçao, he marked his return to international competition after his myocarditis-related absence with two goals in a 4–0 victory for Canada.[110]

In November 2022, Davies was named to Canada’s squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[111] In Canada’s first match of the tournament against Belgium on November 23, he failed to score an early penalty in an eventual 1–0 loss, with Thibaut Courtois saving his shot.[112] Four days later, he scored Canada’s first ever goal at the FIFA World Cup in the match against Croatia; however, Croatia came back to win 4–1, eliminating Canada from the tournament after two matches.[113]

In June 2023, Davies was named to the final 23-man squad for Canada ahead of the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals.[114] Having missed the final months of the club season due to a hamstring injury, Davies did not start in the semi-final against Panama, but came off the bench as a substitute in the second half and scored the team’s second goal in a 2–0 victory. Canada advanced to the tournament final against the United States, their first tournament final in 23 years.[115]

The Personal Life of Alphonse Davies

Alphonse Davies was in a relationship with Canadian soccer star Jordyn Huitema, who plays as a forward for Paris Saint-Germain and the Canada women’s national team.

He landed in hot water with Bayern Munich after he arrived late to a Bayern training from visiting Huitema in Paris. Daves was fined €20,000 by Bayern for his lateness. However, in 2022 Davies confirmed on social media that he and his long-term girlfriend Huitema had broken up.

Away from the soccer pitch, Davies is the first footballer and Canadian to become an ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

He raised money for the agency by playing a virtual soccer match against fellow professional Asmir Begovic. Begovic was also a child refugee who fled the Bosnian war to Germany before moving to Canada.

Davies is a huge fan of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, He also serves as a club ambassador with Edmonton BTB SC. The Canadian international played with Edmonton BTB  SC during his youth.

Conclusion

Alphonse Davies has already etched his name in football history despite his relatively young age. He is rightly called the face of Canadian football, having become an integral part of their football structure.

With Davies yet to win trophies with the national side, there is still more history left for this Canadian superstar to etch his name in the annals of football history as an all-time great.