It was a historic day for Canada, but a sad one as well, as they lost Ismael Kone to injury. Jonathan David's hat trick was little solace.
A Bittersweet Victory
As Canada made history with a dominant 6-0 win over Qatar on Thursday afternoon, recording their first World Cup victory, the mood was both joyous and sombre as Les Rouges lost a key player in Kone to a brutally fractured leg.
Canada is almost sure to advance out of Group B to the knockout round now, but they will have to do it without Kone, one of their most influential players.
“It had everything to be such a special night. I think we entered the game pretty well. We know we came here to do very good, to win the game, to make it such a beautiful day for Canada, but at the same time you feel so empty up after what happened to Ismael,” Canadian captain Stephen Eustaquio said after the game. “It’s unfortunate. Obviously, you guys know that Ismael is so important for us. We love him like his family, and it’s so unfortunate that that happened. We just have to continue. He’s going to want us to win the next match, and that’s what we’re going to try to do for him.”
Injury Woes Return
A team that had just gotten over its injury woes with the news that Alphonso Davies’ truculent hamstring was fully healed, after coming into the Cup with a hospital ward of players, now hope to win Group B and advance to the next round. The July 2 knockout-round game at B.C. Place would feature Canada, if they top the group.
With Switzerland beating Bosnia-Herzegovina 4-1 earlier in the day, it sets up the June 24 meeting between the two teams as a must-win for the Swiss, if they want first. Canada leads the group on the goal-difference tiebreaker, meaning a tie in that game would be enough to claim first.
Jonathan David's Hat Trick
Thursday night should have been a celebration, least of all for Jonathan David, who scored the first hat trick for a host nation since Geoff Hurst of England in 1966. It was the first win at the World Cup in Canada’s history. They recorded their first point with their tie against Bosnia-Herzegovina a week ago, but they still entered Thursday’s game with a 0-6-1 record.
“It’s historic, obviously. It’s our first win ever in the World Cup, and to do it in this fashion, I think was very good,” said David. “It’s very difficult, especially in a game that was basically won at that point. (It was) very hard for us, for himself, for the team. It was a difficult moment, obviously, but we have to stay strong for him.”
Match Events
The game was played on a downhill slope after Qatar’s Homam Ahmed was red-carded for a DOGSO foul in the first half, putting his team down to 10 men after 33 minutes. Canada already led at that point, with Cyle Larin’s 16th minute opener, and the dominance from Les Rouges became even more pointed, and they surged to a 3-0 first half lead.
In the 53rd minute, Asim Madibo took Kone down from behind with a needlessly reckless kick to his left leg, instantly dropping the Canadian midfielder to the ground. Players around him instantly signalled to the benches for trainers to come out. A VAR review determined that Madibo warranted a red card, and the Qatari — distraught at the sight of Kone’s badly mangled leg — exited the field, leaving his team with just nine players.
Canada kept pushing with the tiebreakers in mind, with Nathan Saliba scoring a golazo free kick seconds after replacing Kone, and getting an own goal from Mohammed Manai in the 75th.
Dominant Performance
The Canadians outshot the undermanned Qataris 31-2, putting 10 shots on target to 0 from the visitors. They held 78 per cent of the ball and had 19 corners to Qatar’s one.
“It was a shock for everyone,” said Davies. “You never expect this in the game of football, especially injuries like this. It was just a shock, and you know we’re mixed emotions. We’re happy we won the game, but obviously we know we lost a player that has a lot of quality, that brings a lot of quality to this team. We’re all trying to stay strong for him and keep our head up for him, and hopefully everything goes well.”
52,497 fans took in the game, a second straight sellout at B.C. Place.
“It was bittersweet,” said Johnston. “But at the same time. We’re going to look at it as it’s a six-nil World Cup game. I don’t care who you’re playing against, what the situation is, that’s something that puts yourself in history books. It’s a first ever win for us, and it sets us up really well for the rest of this group stage, and hopefully the knockouts.”
