David, Gilles named Canada Soccer Players of the Year

Jonathan David and Vanessa Gilles, two of the first names on the Canadian team sheet, have been named Canada Soccer Players of the Year.

David, who plays his club football in France with Lille, also won the award in 2019. This time he beat out runner-up Moise Bombito, a defender with France's Nice, and Alistair Johnston, a fullback with Glasgow Celtic.

Gilles, a centre back with France's Lyon on loan from the NWSL's Angel City, won over runner-up Jessie Fleming, Canada captain and a midfielder with the NWSL Portland Thorns, and Roma striker Evelyne Viens.

David had a banner year for club and country.

The 24-year-old from Ottawa leads France's Ligue 1 with 11 goals in 14 games this season, with 17 goals in all competitions. He surpassed the 100-goal career mark for Lille on Dec. 6 with a brace in the 3-1 win over Brest in Ligue 1 play and is closing in on Lille's all-time record of 112 goals by Andre Stappe.

He appeared in 49 games for Lille in 2024, recording 36 goals and 10 assists.

Able to play provider as well as score goals, David registered five goals and four assists in 14 games for Canada this year, upping his goals total to 31 to lead Cyle Larin by one in the Canadian men's record book.

"Representing this country is a privilege, and I'm proud of everything we've accomplished together," David said in a Canada Soccer statement. "With the 2026 FIFA World Cup on the horizon, I’m excited for what's ahead."

Canada coach Jesse Marsch calls David a "very special personality."

"He's the smartest player I've ever coached," Marsch, whose resume includes stops in MLS, England, Austria and Germany, said last month. "And so his understanding of what's happening in the game and how to move around to find the game in the right way, to help the team, I think is at a really high level.

"And the team knows that getting him in the match is really important for us."

David, who also has 16 assists in his 59 Canada appearances (including 50 starts), says he needs that intelligence on the pitch.

"This is a part of my game that I try to work with because obviously, I'm not the biggest, fastest guy in the world," he said earlier this year. "There's people that are faster than me, stronger than me. So I have to use my intelligence in ways to get in smart positions."

A free agent after this season, David has attracted interest from major clubs across Europe.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., David was three months old when his family moved to Haiti and was six years old when it came north to Ottawa. He played his youth soccer with the Gloucester Hornets and Ottawa Internationals.

A trial with KAA Gent came in 2017 after a scout saw him on video. He eventually made the team, making the jump to Lille in August 2020 for $46.5 million, the highest-ever transfer fee paid for a Canadian soccer player.

Gilles has become a fixture at the heart of the Canadian defence, as well as an aerial scoring threat with four goals in 14 outings for Canada in 2024, upping her career total to seven goals in 48 senior appearances.

It was a tumultuous year for the sixth-ranked Canadian women, who found themselves in the middle of a drone-spying scandal at the Paris Olympic that cost head coach Bev Priestman her job.

"It’s been a heck of a year filled with many highs and lows, but getting to represent this country has always been one of my greatest joys," Gilles said in a statement. "As we move forward in a new cycle, I’m incredibly excited for what the future holds for this team."

The 28-year-old from Ottawa scored the first goal in Angel City history, heading home a Jun Endo cross in the third minute of the expansion NWSL franchise's regular-season opener, a 2-1 win over the North Carolina Courage in April 2022.

Gilles joined Angel City in December 2021 from France's FC Girondins de Bordeaux. At the time, Angel City sporting director Eni Aluko called Gilles "one of the leading central defenders globally."

Gilles grew up playing tennis but quit at 15, joining her high school soccer team at 16 as a goalkeeper. That did not last long, with Gilles switching to defender.

She went on to star at the University of Cincinnati, starting all 82 games she played there from 2014 to '17. She was named the American Athletic Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection in 2017.

After her Bearcats career, she joined Apollon Ladies FC in Cyprus before signing in France in July 2018.

Fleming, the Canada captain, won the Canada Soccer award the last three years with Kadeisha Buchanan honoured in 2015, '17 and '20 and Lawrence in 2019.

The other women's nominees were Buchanan, Kailen Sheridan, Jade Rose, Ashley Lawrence and Simi Awujo.

Other men's nominees were four-time winner and Canada captain Alphonso Davies (2018, '20, '21 and '22), vice-captain Stephen Eustaquio (2023), Maxime Crepeau, Jacob Shaffelburg and Larin.

Former Canada captains Christine Sinclair and Atiba Hutchinson dominated the awards in the past with Sinclair winning 14 times and Hutchinson six. Both are now retired.

The player awards were decided by a ballot of Canadian media and coaches.

Earlier this week, Olivia Smith and Nathan Saliba were named Canada Soccer Young Players of the Year, Duncan McDonald was chosen Canada Soccer Para Soccer Player of the Year and Loïc Kwemi was named Canada Soccer Futsal Player of the Year.

Goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan won the 2024 Allstate Good Hands Award in a fan vote.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 20, 2024.