The matches of the best 32 at the World Cup began with a match between two teams, none of which had previously reached the elimination stage. South Africa won only one of the last 8 matches, Canada lost one of the last eleven, although in both cases the trend was reversed in the last match.
It was already certain after the 2nd round that among the host countries Mexico and it is United States continues as group leader, and although the third co-host of the third round, Canada, also came out on top, with a 1-2 draw against Switzerland lost game Jesse Marsch’s team finished second in Group B with 4 points. The Canadians fought for their place in the top 32 by first scoring points at the World Championships for the first time in their history (the against Bosnians), By knocking out Qatar 6-0 and they were able to celebrate their first won World Cup match. Furthermore, they became the first host in history to play outside the country during a World Cup. In order for them to advance, another record was needed, as it follows from the previous ones that they have never won two more matches at the World Cup.
As their opponents, the tied with the Czechs playing He beat South Korea 1-0 Neither does South Africa. Hugo Broos’ team finished second in Group A, behind Mexico, also with 4 points. Just like Canada, the South Africans are also newcomers to the elimination stage, so when the match started in Los Angeles at 12:00 noon local time, it was safe to assume that a team that had never been to the round of 16 would make it to the top 16.
The stakes were therefore not small, and accordingly, the teams started the match cautiously. In the 6th minute, a South African shot hit the goal, then 4 minutes later, the Canadians gave away a corner. In the first 20 minutes, the South Africans had more of the ball, and the Canadians threatened from fixed positions.
In the 22nd minute, Cornelius had a clear header from 6 meters, but it hit Ronwen Williams. South Africa skillfully slowed down the game and once in a while they played creatively in front of the Canadian goal. But with Jesse Marsch’s team not putting much pressure on them, they tended to cherish the ball at the back. In any case, in the 31st minute, there was an important feedback from the large number of Mexican fans that they started cheering on their own team. At the beginning of the half, Canada had its moments, especially thanks to Millar, who was active on the left, and Bombito’s header had to be saved from the goal line by Modiba a few minutes before the end of the first period. But the teams entered the locker room with a score of 0-0. At that time, the thermometer showed 20 degrees in Los Angeles, shortly before 1 pm, and 30 degrees in Budapest, approaching 10 pm.
The second half started sleepily. The first event worth mentioning was that in the 56th minute Crépeau had to pull off a throw-in. And half an hour before the end of regular time, the fans could still guess when the match would actually start. In the 65th minute, perhaps the South African defense opened up for the first time, but Oluwaseyi’s position was saved in the corner, and the drinking break followed shortly thereafter.
The Canadians didn’t rush too much after that, and they often watched from a decent distance that goalkeeper Williams was playing peacefully with his defenders. In the 75th minute, the Canadians’ biggest star entered the field for the first time since his injury last year. Alphonso Davieswho immediately received the team captain’s armband. A minute later, Promise David threatened. From then on, Canada revived somewhat, and on the other side, Crépeau had to stretch. Then, in the 92nd minute, Jesse Marsch’s team woke up for a flash, and with Eustaquio’s goal, they won this match that did not bring much beauty. Canada will play the winner of the Morocco-Netherlands match in the top 16.
