Qatar endured the darkest night in its brief World Cup history on Friday, collapsing to a 6-0 defeat against Canada after finishing most of the second half with nine men in a match marred by a serious injury to Canadian midfielder Ismael Kone.
The heavy loss was Qatar's biggest-ever defeat at a World Cup, surpassing the three defeats it suffered as tournament hosts in 2022. Goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada appeared overcome with emotion after the final whistle, breaking down in tears before being consoled by a teammate and Canada's Jacob Schaffelburg.
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"It was a tough match, because everything that could go wrong, did go wrong," Qatar coach Julen Lopetegui said. "That's how football is sometimes."
Qatar's hopes unraveled after defender Homam Ahmed was sent off in the 33rd minute when his yellow card was upgraded to a red following a review.
The situation worsened in the second half when midfielder Assim Madibo received a straight red card for a tackle from behind on Kone that left the Canadian with a broken lower left leg. Kone was stretchered off and taken to hospital, where he underwent surgery.
Nathan Saliba, who replaced the injured Kone, curled home a free kick from around 20 yards in the 64th minute to score Canada's fourth goal.
Reduced to nine men, Qatar struggled to contain Canada's relentless attack. Defensive lapses and an inability to clear rebounds from Abunada's saves repeatedly punished the visitors, who failed to register a single shot on target while Canada tested the goalkeeper 10 times.
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"It was a very tough match for many reasons," Lopetegui said. "The players did their best. It was very difficult to face this match with two players less with this environment."
Tempers flared again after the final whistle when Lopetegui and Canada coach Jesse Marsch were involved in a heated exchange.
Marsch said Madibo apologized to Kone after the match but criticised Qatar's reaction to the challenge.
"I don't understand a reaction from their entire bench to try to start a fight about it being a red card when a clear foul just happened that broke a player's leg," Marsch said. "So, strange behavior."
Despite the defeat, Qatar remains mathematically in contention for a place in the knockout rounds. It next faces Bosnia-Herzegovina in Seattle on Wednesday.
