Music: {allcanada} Canada's Occean expected to play vs. Cuba

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It's crunch time for Canada in World Cup qualifying, and the team needs all hands on deck.

So the confirmation from coach Stephen Hart that striker Olivier Occean, who's been recently hampered by injury problems, should be fit to play in a crucial match against Cuba next month is very good news.

A 30-year-old native of Brossard, Que., Occean started all of Eintracht Frankfurt's opening three fixtures of the current Bundesliga season, and scored his first goal for the German club in a 3-2 win over Hamburg on Sept. 16.

But five days later he limped off the field during a match against FC Nurnberg with what the club later described as a "muscle injury" and was quickly substituted out. Occean did not play at all in Frankfurt's 3-3 draw with Borussia Dortmund earlier this week.

Hart has since spoken with Occean, and told reporters Thursday that he expects the striker to be available for selection when Canada hosts Cuba on Oct. 12 in Toronto.

"I expect him to play, but of course that will depend on the medical team at his club. He told me they are working him on a daily basis. He missed a mid-week game (so) we'll see what happens on the weekend," Hart said during a conference call.

Occean sat out Canada's 2-0 qualifying loss to Panama earlier this month because of a back injury.

Canada needs a healthy Occean now more than ever with two important matches coming up. Occean has six goals in 27 appearances, including netting the lone goal in a 1-0 qualifying win over Cuba in June.

He's also coming off a stellar 2011-12 season in which he finished as the top scorer in Germany's second division with 17 goals and helped Greuther Furth win promotion to the Bundesliga. It was his outstanding form at Greuther Furth that paved the way for his summer transfer to Frankfurt.

With Dwayne De Rosario and Josh Simpson both out with long-term injuries, Occean could provide some much-needed offensive spark to an offensively-challenged Canadian side that only has two goals in four matches during the current qualifying round.

While it's good news about Occean, the prognosis is not so positive for Simpson, a 29-year-old attacking midfielder and a regular starter for Canada. Simpson broke his leg in May while playing for Swiss club BSC Young Boys. Although his condition is improving, Hart said Simpson is still some distance away from playing again.

"I just got an update from him. The cast is off (but) it's going to be a long time with Josh, unfortunately," Hart admitted.

Canada currently sits third in Group C with seven points. Panama is second (nine points), followed by Honduras (seven). Only the top two nations move on to "The Hex," the final round of the CONCACAF qualifiers where the best three countries in the six-team, round-robin group qualify for the World Cup. Canada has not advanced to "the Hex" since 1998, and even then it finished dead last.

After the Cuba contest, Canada travels to Honduras for its final group stage match on Oct. 16, a game it will more than likely have to take points from in order to advance to the next round.

With that in mind, Canada needs to earn a win over Cuba to have a realistic shot at the Hex. But even though the Cubans have already been eliminated from World Cup contention, Hart explained they have a lot to play for, namely qualifying for next year's COCNACAF Gold Cup.

"They might be out of the running but they are also preparing for a tournament to get to the Gold Cup, and they're playing for pride. They're a very proud people and I think they will come out to show that they are a team that probably could have done better," he said.

The night before the loss to Panama earlier this month, fans outside Canada's hotel in Panama City caused a commotion by blasting their car horns, letting off fireworks and beating drums until the early morning, all in an effort to disrupt the Canadian players' sleep.

It worked, as Canada looked sluggish in the loss to Panama.

Hart said the team plans to take precautions against Canada being similarly disrupted in Honduras (such a tactic is common by fans in Central America) but wouldn't elaborate how.

"I've never seen anything like Panama," he admitted. "I've witnessed some street stuff before in Honduras and in the past, but nothing like what was done in Panama."

Hart said he will likely announce his roster next week for the October qualifiers.