The opportunities came one after another. From distance and from close range. From corners, free kicks and open play. The fearless upstarts from Canada who have spent the past couple of years upending North American’s football long-standing order had arrived on the global stage and were taking it to the world’s No 2 team.
All of them shone on Monday night, from the stars to the supporting cast. Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan David, Tajon Buchanan, Alphonso Davies, Richie Laryea, Junior Hoilett, Alistair Johnston and the ageless captain Atiba Hutchinson, three months shy of his 40th birthday, made demands of Belgium’s creaking backline and their world-class goalkeeper. Any one of them might have written themselves into history as Canada’s first goalscorer at a men’s World Cup.
