In its first match at a men’s World Cup in 36 years, Canada was brave and valiant, impressive and imperious. Yet those don’t put goals on the scoreboard.
Despite a performance in which it vastly outplayed Belgium for large stretches, it was the second-ranked Red Devils taking a 1–0 result in their opening match of group play in Qatar. Thibaut Courtois’s save of Alphonso Davies’s penalty kick and Michy Batshuayi’s goal just before halftime were the two decisive moments that allowed the 2018 third-place finisher to walk away with the three points. By virtue of Morocco and Croatia’s scoreless draw earlier in the day, Canada sits in last in the group, which seems harsh considering the underlying numbers of the performance. Canada’s expected goals, which includes the penalty, was 2.57, while Belgium’s was 0.76, according to TruMedia. Courtois, however, was the difference, and as most who have experienced World Cups know—and as Canada surely found out—margins on this stage can be quite fine.
Canada, led by a rising young nucleus featuring Davies and Lille forward Jonathan David. topped Concacaf’s World Cup qualifying table and has been rather fearless in its approach under manager John Herdman. That translated to the bigger stage, where there were no signs of the kind of nerves that might plague a side for which just being there is good enough.
