John Herdman was leaving the stage when it was announced the player of the match would be next up to face the media. The recipient of Fifa’s award left the Canada head coach stunned. “Kevin De Bruyne is player of the match? Wow,” he said. If there was an insult, it was only to Canada.
The Belgium playmaker was embarrassed to be singled out for praise after Canada brought everything to their first World Cup appearance for 36 years except a clinical touch. His honesty, and Michy Batshuayi’s ruthless finish, were the only highlights of a worrying night for Roberto Martínez’s team. “I don’t think I had a great game. I don’t know why I have the award, maybe it’s the name,” admitted De Bruyne. “We didn’t play a good game, me included, but the good thing was we found a way to win.”
