Sunday’s World Cup action saw the second team officially eliminated from knockout round contention, while all eyes are on presumed favorites Brazil and how they’ll fare in Group G without their superhero, Neymar. There was also a brilliant 1-1 draw for two more contenders, Spain and Germany, that means Group E will go down to the wire as all four countries still have a clear path to the last-16.
Be sure to check in with ESPN throughout the tournament as we bring you the latest from Qatar. Here’s what you might have missed from the Saturday World Cup happenings, and a look ahead to what’s next on Sunday.
Sunday was a day of mixed emotions for Canada fans.
On the good side, Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies scored the first World Cup goal ever in Canadian men’s history, thundering a header beyond Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic after just 67 seconds. On the bad side, Croatia quickly woke up, scoring four unanswered goals to win 4-1 and make Canada the second team to be eliminated from knockout round contention after host nation Qatar were the first on Friday. All they have left to play for is pride when they take on Morocco on Thursday, though their opponents have a shot at the last-16 following their 2-1 win over Belgium earlier on Sunday.
Yes, this was a chastening end to a tournament that offered a lot of promise for the side that finished above the US and Mexico in CONCACAF qualifying, but with many of their young players (including Davies, Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan) still with plenty of career ahead of them, this experience should stand them in better stead for when the expanded, 48-team World Cup comes to North America in 2026.
In both Group F games they’ve played to date, against Belgium and Croatia, John Herdman’s side were aggressive and quick on both sides of the ball, but were often too indecisive in key moments. Their savvier opponents exploited it to the fullest: while Belgium rode their luck and profited from one clinical finish to win 1-0, Croatia’s superb midfield — led by the ageless Luka Modric, 37 years old, and Ivan Perisic, 33 — just had to be patient and pick the weak spots when they presented themselves.
One thing they may want to watch in the future, though, is what their coach says to the media. Much was made of his “F— Croatia!” remarks after Canada’s defeat to Belgium, and Croatia forward Andrej Kramaric certainly noticed. “I want to thank Canada’s coach for the motivation,” he said after scoring twice in the 4-1 win. “We demonstrated who f—ed whom.”
