The runner-up woke up: Croatia, the spoilsport for a Canada that plays well but doesn’t win

Those attending the meeting between Croatia Y Canada They hadn’t finished getting settled in the stands of the Khalifa International Stadium when Alfonso Davies appeared to score the fastest goal (67 seconds) so far this season World Cup Qatar 2022. The Canadian star entered the center of the rival area and with a powerful header he finished off goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic.

This score meant the end of the scoring drought for the maple leaf team in World Cup history. It took 36 years, 5 months, and 26 days for the North American country to celebrate its first score in the most important national team event on the planet.

Doubt and uncertainty were felt among the Croatian fans who arrived at the Qatari sports venue. Especially after what happened hours before with the victory of Morocco over Belgium. However, this did not last long. Thirty-four minutes later Andrej Kramaric leveled the actions, after a perfect qualification from the experienced Ivan Perisic.

Luka Modric and company gained more confidence. Through his signature touch, those led by Zlatko Dalic began to find more space between the Canadian lines. That was how Marko Livaja found a ball on the edge of the large area and did not hesitate to take an accurate shot to the right hand of Milan Borjan, who saw his goal fall for the second time in the match.

Twenty minutes from the end, Kramaric was present on the scoreboard for the second time in the match. The man from 1899 Hoffenheim practically sentenced the contest. Lovro Majer scored the final fourth goal and Canada ended up saying goodbye to the tournament.

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Unlike what happened in Mexico 86 (first participation), Canada showed a much improved version of its soccer. At times, two casts that were part of the podium in Russia 2018 such as Belgium and Croatia were measured equally. They made it clear that they are not Alphonso Davies and ten others. In the central defense, the presence of Kamal Miller stood out, meters ahead Huntchinson being the all-rounder and the winger Tajon Buchanan with his speed caused more than one headache.

There is no doubt that their great objective will be to make history in the 2026 edition, which has them as organizers together with the United States and Mexico. There are still four years left and a large part of this group (average age 27 years) who said goodbye to Qatar today will have their revenge in the next World Cup. Those of us who witnessed this team have no doubt about it.

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