CF Montréal captain Samuel Piette knows Stade Saputo better than anyone else.
Yet the 31-year-old will play at the stadium in a Canada shirt for just the second time in his career on Saturday against Peru (2 pm ET | TSN, RDS, OneSoccer).
He is set to earn his 70th cap, and Canada Soccer will honor his contributions to the program, despite Piette making it clear he is not retiring — as Junior Hoilett did when he earned his 70th cap and send-off in last week’s 1-0 win over Chile in Toronto.
“Being from Montréal and having the pleasure of representing this team for many, many years, to be able to play another game here at home in front of my family and my friends... It's always special to play," Piette told reporters on Friday.
“Obviously, there’s representing the city of Montréal, but I don't think there's anything better than representing your country, and to do so with a special team and a special group of people.”
Nine years ago, Piette posted an assist in his only previous Canada appearance in Montréal, leading the team to a 2-1 friendly win over Curaçao. Cyle Larin started that game too, with the two veterans the only remaining players from that lineup.
Since then, Canada have made massive strides, culminating in their historic run to the 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 16, which Piette watched from home but helped make possible as a core piece of the last decade.
“The World Cup set the tone that this team is different; there are more gears, and I think now it's just about keeping on winning games and to start winning trophies,” added Piette.
“That's the end goal of obviously every team, but I think this team and this group proved that it's a serious soccer team that wants to get things done... I know within the group they believed themselves that they could go all the way, and now there are more opportunities, and every game I think they're taking them seriously, and they want to show with the performance, but also with the results.”
Building on Chile
Canada opened their fall camp with a 1-0 win over Chile, though the performance left plenty of room for improvement as they struggled to generate chances despite playing against nine men for the final 40 minutes.
Against Peru, they’ll look to be clinical, hoping Jonathan David can carry his strong Atlético Madrid form into the match while looking for others to help generate more consistent attacking threat..
“The simple answer is just work on it in training,” David said Thursday. “The more we work on it in training, the more we’re going to see those things happen in games. We’ll have that reference to make things happen.”
Having seen the US men's national team’s recent win over Peru, though, Canada know the South American side still has enough veteran quality to pose a challenge.
Eleven subs will be allowed in the match, and while head coach Jesse Marsch didn't hint at his lineup, the LaLiga foursome of David, Nathan Saliba, Tani Oluwaseyi and Tajon Buchanan could take on big roles.
“It's different soccer; it's a very patient soccer. They like to keep the ball a lot; it’s really technically orientated, so it has made me grow as a player,” Saliba said of his recent move to Villarreal from Belgium’s Anderlecht.
“Coming back here, it's very direct, and we're looking to score goals and be very aggressive. I think it's somewhere I can bring a bit more, maybe, patience, especially in the final third... It's something that's been good for me personally, and I'm hoping it can be something I can bring to this team.”
Goalkeeper change
Plenty of attention surrounds Canada’s goalscoring, but the goalkeeping question is back in focus, too.
Marsch named Maxime Crépeau the World Cup No. 1, but with the Orlando City goalkeeper out of camp and a new cycle underway, other options have emerged.
Inter Miami’s Dayne St. Clair started and secured the clean sheet against Chile, but won’t start against Peru. Instead, 22-year-old Owen Goodman will make his first Canada start, with the Crystal Palace product, on loan at Scotland’s Dundee FC, seen as a potential future star between the sticks.
“Max has done a lot to earn the No. 1 spot. So I would probably lean towards saying [he remains the starter], but I think that Dayne St. Clair is still competing for that spot and to show that he's ready,” Marsch said. “For Owen, this will be his first chance to be on the pitch for Canada and show his quality...[he] has had a really good week, and we're excited for him to have an opportunity.”
While improving overall performance will headline Saturday’s nearly sold-out affair, Canada are also eyeing the final clash of the window against a youthful USMNT on Oct. 6 at Minnesota United’s Allianz Field.
