Michy Batshuayi scored the only goal of the game to help Belgium produce one of the narrow football results of the midweek action in the World Cup. Canada, who were competing in their second World Cup finals, lost a fantastic chance to grab the lead right away when Alphonso Davies’ penalty was saved. Just before halftime, Belgium forward Michy Batshuayi capitalized on the situation by scoring the game’s only goal to give the Red Devils a slim Group F victory in Qatar. Canada’s hunt for a first point and a first goal continues into their next game against Croatia on Sunday after they failed to score in each of their three losses in their only earlier World Cup finals participation in 1986.
Ten minutes after a Taylor Buchanan shot hit Yannick Carrasco in the area, Canada had a wonderful opportunity to grab the lead, but Davies saw his feeble effort saved by Thibaut Courtois. An old Belgian backline frequently creaked in response to surges of attacks as the North American team continued to dominate in the first half, yet they somehow fell behind after 44 minutes. The Canada defense failed to intercept a Toby Alderweireld kick upfield, and Batshuayi took full advantage by bringing the ball down in the box with one touch before slamming his second forcefully into the goal.
The fact that Roberto Martinez felt the need to make two substitutions for Youri Tielemans and Carrasco at halftime says a lot, replacing them with Amadou Onana and Thomas Meunier, revealed a lot about Belgium’s first-half performance. The adjustments made it possible for Belgium to survive a difficult opening victory while containing some of the Canadian tides. They will play Morocco next, and a victory would likely advance them to the round of 16.
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