Buchanan's rise to Inter Milan a testament to his drive and perseverance

Former Canadian international Terry Dunfield knew the very first time he saw Tajon Buchanan up close and personal that he was destined for greatness. 

Dunfield, who earned 14 caps for Canada from 2010 to 2015, was an assistant coach for the Canadian under-23 team that competed at the 2020 Concacaf Olympic qualifying tournament. Included in Canada’s 20-man squad was Buchanan, a promising winger/wingback who at the time was playing in MLS and was considered one of the hottest young prospects in the entire Concacaf region.

Dunfield had never previously seen Buchanan play in person, only on TV. But it didn’t take the former midfielder very long to be blown away while watching Buchanan in practice with his Canadian teammates. 

“From the first time I saw him train it was like, ‘Holy s**t, this guy’s good!’ When you see him up close, you realize just how good he really is,” Dunfield told Sportsnet. 

The rest of the soccer world now knows it, too. Fabled Italian outfit Inter Milan announced on Friday that it had secured Buchanan’s rights following a transfer deal reported to be worth €10 million from Club Brugge of the Belgian first division. In doing so, Buchanan, a 24-year-old from Brampton, Ont., will soon make history as the first member of Canada’s men’s team to play in Serie A, historically regarded as one of the best leagues in the world.

Truly landmark moments in Canadian soccer have been few and far between over the last two decades. This is one of them. To have a prominent member of the Canadian men’s team feature for one of the most famous clubs in the world would have been inconceivable 10 years ago. Slowly but surely, it has become the norm, as Buchanan follows in the footsteps of Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Jonathan David (Lille), Stephen Eustáquio (Porto), Cyle Larin (Mallorca) and Alistair Johnston (Celtic). 

Top European clubs have come to learn a valuable lesson in that they can’t afford to continue to snobbishly look down their noses at Canadian players who they derisively dismissed as coming from a “hockey country.” Europe’s top outfits now realize Canada is no longer an insignificant soccer outpost, and that its considerable talent pool is vast and full of quality and ready to be tapped. 

Inter Milan have a history of splashing big cash on foreign players, which is more than fitting given their full name: Football Club Internazionale Milano. Although long owned by the famous Moratti family, the team’s reach has always been international and extended beyond Italy’s borders. In 1997, the Nerazzurri paid a then world record transfer fee of $27 million US to FC Barcelona for Brazilian forward Ronaldo. So, when they see somebody they like they go after them, and more times than not they get it right. 

One can understand why Inter Milan was keen to sign Buchanan, who first landed on their radar while playing for Canada at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar when he set up Davies’ goal in a 4-1 loss to Croatia. In three seasons with Brugge, Buchanan has tallied five goals and 12 assists in 67 games in all competitions, including in the UEFA Champions League. Opposing defenders in the Belgian league have struggled to deal with his speed and his probing runs, as have Canada’s opponents in Concacaf competitions. 

“He’s ridiculously quick — like, Alphonso Davies quick. He’s a little bit unpredictable, as well,” Dunfield offered. 

Dunfield also compared Buchanan to Chelsea star and England international Raheem Sterling in that he “gets to a ball that you think he has no right in getting to because he’s so quick.”

But Buchanan is much more than just a speed merchant. His on-field intelligence and problem-solving ability also caught Dunfield’s eye both with the under-23 side and when he made his senior team debut in 2021, playing a pivotal role in helping Canada reach the semifinals of that summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup. 

“It’s amazing how quickly he adapts to whatever situation is in front of him — he can figure stuff out very quickly. Very rarely do you see him repeating the same mistake and I think you saw that in the [2021] Gold Cup where he was double-teamed and he was finding teammates with the ball,” Dunfield said. 

Although known for his dynamic attacking play and flashy runs down either flank, Buchanan put in the time and work on the training ground in order to become a stronger two-way player before he went to Belgium. 

“You can see that on the defensive side of his game, how quickly he’s picked that up. ... He’s very open to feedback and I think that part of his game grew throughout the Olympic [qualifying] tournament,” Dunfield said. 

Canada didn’t end up going to the Tokyo Olympics, but Buchanan distinguished himself at the Concacaf qualifiers and in 2021 he was sold by the New England Revolution of MLS to Club Brugge as part of a $7 million US transfer deal. He’s also become an invaluable member of the Canadian senior team, having earned 35 caps and scored four goals. 

That Buchanan now finds himself set to turn out for one of Europe’s glamour clubs — Inter have 19 Serie A titles and three UEFA Champions League crowns to their credit — is a testament to his drive and perseverance.  

His quick ascent through the ranks is an incredible story of a player who turned out for semi-pro side Sigma FC, based in Mississauga, Ont., in League1 Ontario and played NCAA soccer for Syracuse University before being drafted by New England in 2019. 

Dino Rossi, the Executive Chairman of League1 Ontario, remembers Buchanan during his brief stint with Sigma, recalling it was quite evident that the young prospect had the potential to become a very special player. The hope is that Buchanan’s meteoric rise from a humble prospect just trying to make it to an international star will encourage other Canadian youngsters to not give up on their dreams. 

"It is always very exciting to see Canadian players blaze new, bold trails at the professional level of the game. It's an even bigger deal when a Canadian player finds themselves signing with one of the biggest and most successful clubs in the world. [Buchanan] should be a source of inspiration for younger generations of players. The pathway for Canadians to achieve great things in this sport is improving year by year.  I'm confident that there will be many more Canadians following in his footsteps in the future," Rossi told Sportsnet.