On a day where Canada had to win to keep their FIFA World Cup goals within reach, they responded with a 6-0 demolition of Qatar at BC Place in Vancouver.
The Canadian men’s first-ever victory at a Men’s World Cup included a Jonathan David hat-trick, and goals from Cyle Larin and Nathan Sailba.
It wasn’t all good, however, as a gruesome tackle by Qatar’s Assim Madibo resulted in what looked like a serious leg injury for key midfielder Ismael Kone.
Head coach Jesse Marsch once again pulled the right strings in terms of his squad selection, but what he does in Kone’s absence looms large.
(All ratings are between 1-10 with 5 indicating an average performance)
Maxime Crepeau: 7
Qatar registered two shots with none on target. Crepeau could have put up a hammock between his posts and few would’ve been the wiser. Clean sheets, however, all count the same.
Richie Laryea: 8.5
Laryea signalled Canada’s intent in the opening minutes with a daring run into the Qatari box. A total of 79 touches, three chances created and four passes into the final third, Laryea was at his incisive best.
Luc de Fougerolles: 8
He had to be careful thanks to the yellow card picked up against Bosnia and Herzegovina, but the 20-year-old played within himself throughout. De Fougerolles went one-for-one in aerial duels. The low number speaks to Qatar’s neutered attack, even before the red cards.
Derek Cornelius: 6.5
For the 15 or so minutes the visitors threatened to make this a competitive match, it seemed winger Akram Afif would be the catalyst. The yellow Cornelius picked up fouling Afif led to his substitution at the start of the second half as Marsch opted for a clean slate in Moise Bombito.
Alistair Johnston: 8.5
Maybe his best game in a Canada shirt? Johnston constantly probed the Qatar defence and was 92 per cent on his passing success rate. The six chances created are nice, of course, but his role in helping the squad regroup following Kone’s horrible injury was massive.
Stephen Eustaquio: 8
The captain was everywhere for the Canadians in this one, registering 113 touches for the most in the match. He becomes even more important given the injury to his running mate in the midfield.
Ismael Kone: 8
What can you say? The reactions from the players, on both sides, said it all. For a player with so much to gain at this tournament, it’s the worst possible result.
Ali Ahmed: 7.5
A homecoming for the ages at BC Place. His play against Bosnia and Herzegovina after coming on as a substitute earned him the start in favour of Liam Millar. It’s hard to see Marsch going back to the Hull City man after another solid Ahmed performance.
Tajon Buchanan: 8.5
Required a bounce-back after a below average display in the opener and that’s exactly what we observed. Buchanan had the left side of the Qatari defence in ruins early. A building block game for a player that thrives with the space he was afforded.
Cyle Larin: 9
The Brampton Bagsman settled the nerves of Canadian fans with his second goal of the tournament 16 minutes in. We feel safe in saying Larin will not be starting on the bench the rest of the way.
Jonathan David: 10
A hat-trick has silenced the Iceman’s doubters, but more importantly, it gives Canada’s most important player much-needed confidence as the games only get more important from here. The volley was incredible, but goals one and three were the product of the type of opportunistic forward play we’ve come to expect from David.
Moise Bombito (46’ minute): 6.5
Excellent to get the defender some playing time in almost ideal circumstances as Bombito continues his recovery from injury. How much of a role he’ll play going forward remains to be seen.
Nathan Saliba (57’ minute): 8.5
A nearly perfect freekick shortly after coming on indicates how much talent this player has. Saliba’s tribute to Kone was also beautiful. Is he the man to partner with Eustaquio against Switzerland? The 22-year-old’s time may be now.
Jacob Shaffelburg (71’ minute): 7.5
Maritime Messi was unlucky to have his marker chalked off and instead go down as a Qatar own-goal. For the second consecutive game, Shaffelburg brought positivity off the bench. He’s an extremely useful piece for Marsch in the final stages of a match.
Tani Oluwaseyi (71’ minute): 6
Less influential than his fellow subs on this day.
Niko Sigur (83’ minute): No rating for his short cameo.