Ivan Perisic celebrates after a teammate scored a goal during the Qatar 2022 World Cup Group F football match between Croatia and Canada at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha on November 27, 2022.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP/Getty Images
Croatia scored a fourth straight goal against Canada, going up 4-1. Canada led early after Davies scored 68 seconds into the match, the first men’s World Cup goal for the country.
Canada vs. Croatia key facts
- Final score: Canada 1 - Croatia 4
- Where: Khalifa International Stadium, Doha
- Time: Sunday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. (11:00 a.m. ET)
- Official: Andres Matonte (Uruguay)
- Rankings: Canada (41), Croatia (12)
- How to watch: TSN and CTV
1:45 p.m. EST
Canada’s glory days on World Cup pitch short-lived
For about 20 minutes on Sunday, Canada stood astride the world of soccer. With Saudi Arabia and Japan doing a slow fade, Canada was now the World Cup’s surprise package.
Everyone had been already been charmed by its Cinderella story, its high-energy style and the fact that it is not America. But up a goal on Croatia? That’s something else.
Those were fun times for Canadian soccer fans. Real glory days.
Unfortunately, the first 20 minutes were followed by another hour and a bit. Canada eventually lost 4-1. It became the second team eliminated from this World Cup.
Given the quality of the Canadians’ performances here in Qatar, it’s a disappointment. Even the most hardened neutral would agree this Canadian team deserves one more meaningful game.
But the best parts of Sunday’s match give this team and this program something more than a foundation. Now they have a springboard. They are people of substance on the global scene. A virtuous circle of competence has been created.
Read Cathal Kelly’s full column on Canada’s short-lived World Cup journey
1:05 p.m. EST
Croatia cruises to 4-1 win, but Canada won’t have to wait another 36 years for next World Cup appearance
After a 36-year wait, it’s all over for the Canadian men’s national team after just two games in Qatar.
A day that had started so brightly ends in massive disappointment for Canada. Despite breaking through for a first goal in its fifth World Cup game – through Alphonso Davies after 68 seconds – Croatia, the 2018 World Cup runner-up, gradually worked their way back into a game and ultimately cruised to a 4-1 victory that kept its hopes alive of moving into the knockout rounds. In the end class won out, as a Croatian midfield trio of Marcelo Brozovic, Mateo Kovacic and 2018 Ballon d’Or winner, Luka Modric dictated the tempo of the game almost from that point onward.
Canada can hold its head high, competing in its first men’s World Cup in 36 years, but it becomes the second team eliminated after host Qatar. Davies had inked his name into history with the first goal, but Andrej Kramaric and Marko Livaja put Croatia in front at halftime. Canada, needing a point to stay alive in the competition heading into its final round-robin game Thursday against Morocco, used all five substitutions in an effort to get back into the game.
But a second goal from Kramaric in the 70th minute made that task all the harder, before Majer put the game out of touch in the 94th minute.
One positive is that there won’t be another 36-year wait for another appearance at the men’s World Cup. As co-host in 2026, alongside the United States and Mexico, Canada will automatically qualify and get another crack in just over three and a half years as the World Cup returns to its usual summer slot.
12:56 p.m. EST
Canada knocked out of the World Cup
It’s all over at the Khalifa International Stadium, and for Canada, with tonight’s defeat meaning they will not be able to move beyond the group stages of this World Cup, their first in 36 years. Canada have another game against Morocco on Thursday, but the points deficit is now too great for them to make it up.
12:54 p.m. EST
Croatia score again to make it 4-1
Croatia midfielder Lovro Majer scores past Canada goalkeeper Milan Borjan during the second half of the group F World Cup soccer match at the Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022.Nathan Denette/The Associated Press
This is turning into a rout, as Lovro Majer makes it 4-1 for Croatia.
12:50 p.m. EST
Six minutes of extra time
There will be at least six minutes of added time, but Canada will need to do something really special to pull this game back.
12:47 p.m. EST
Canada needs two goals to avoid elimination
The pressure is starting to show for both teams. With six minutes remaining, the referee issues yellow cards to both Canada’s Kamal Miller and Croatia captain Luka Modric after the pair engage in a shoving match.
Still down 3-1, Canada is in need of a minor miracle at this point to find the two goals it needs to avoid elimination from the 2022 World Cup.
12:37 p.m. EST
Canada faces uphill battle to stay alive in World Cup
Croatia's Andrej Kramaric, scores his side's third goal during the World Cup group F soccer match between Croatia and Canada, at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022.Thanassis Stavrakis/The Associated Press
Down 3-1, and requiring two goals to stay in the World Cup, head coach John Herdman makes his final substitutions, bringing on striker Lucas Cavallini and wingback Sam Adekugbe for Jonathan David and captain Atiba Hutchinson.
Croatia’s Andrej Kramaric had dug a deep hole that much deeper with his second goal of the game in the 70th minute, side-stepping Hutchinson before beating Milan Borjan with a left-footed shot. Canada now faces a mammoth task to level the scores and secure the crucial point it needs to keep alive its slim chances of qualifying for the knockout stages in Thursday’s match against Morocco.
Cheering on Canada in Kyiv
12:30 p.m. EST
Croatia scores another goal
Andrej Kramaric scores his second goal of the match in the 70th minute to put Croatia up 3-1.
12:25 p.m. EST
Herdman swaps Richie Laryea for Junior Hoilett
Canadian head coach John Herdman continues to tinker with his lineup in hopes of finding a way back into this game, bringing on winger Junior Hoilett for fullback Richie Laryea in the 62nd minute. Canada has made three substitutions so far. At half time, Stephen Eustaquio and Cyle Larin were replaced by Jonathan Osorio and Kone Ismael.
12:17 p.m. EST
Yellow card danger for Canada
In the World Cup, two yellow cards over group stage matches means an automatic one-game suspension. In addition to Buchanan’s yellow in the second half, Davies and Alistair Johnston picked up yellow cards in the first game against Belgium. Another for either here would rule them out of Thursday’s game against Morocco.
12:15 p.m. EST
Yellow card for Canada’s Tajon Buchanan
The Canadian is penalized for tripping to stop an attack in the 52nd minute as Croatia continue to press hard in the second half.
12:05 p.m. EST
Second half begins
The game is back underway at the Khalifa International Stadium, with Canada needing at least one goal to avoid being knocked out.
Canada’s Jonathan Osorio replaces Stephen Eustáquio and Ismaël Koné replaces Cyle Larin for the start of the second half.
11:50 a.m. EST
Canada facing elimination heading into second half
To riff on an old football cliché, it was a first half of two halves for Canada. The team had an ideal start, with Alphonso Davies scoring the fastest goal of this World Cup – just 68 seconds in – to put the Canadian men on the board with the country’s first goal at a men’s World Cup. But Croatia’s late pressure paid off.
First Andrej Kramaric and then Marko Livacic slotted past Milan Borjan to give the Europeans a 2-1 lead after 45 minutes.
In between, Canada continued in much the same vein that it had shown in its opening loss to Belgium, attacking with aplomb, and showing no inferiority complex against its more ballyhooed opponent, which finished runner-up four years ago.
John Herdman’s team – in a game it cannot lose if it hopes to move on to the knockout rounds – refused to rest on its laurels after getting the upper hand. It continued to attack, and its new-look offence, with Cyle Larin brought in alongside Jonathan David, brought other chances of scoring, though Davies’s header from a Tajon Buchanan cross remained Canada’s lone shot on target at the interval.
Milan Borjan did his part in the Canada goal, too, saving smartly from Livacic shortly before Croatia got on the board. But he could do little to stop both goals, as first Kramaric cashed in on some heavy Croatia pressure on 36 minutes, before Livacic put his team up 2-1 one minute before halftime.
11:45 a.m. EST
Qatar’s oldest stadium
While many of the stadiums being used in this World Cup are brand new — and some are due to be converted or torn down when the tournament finishes — Canada is playing tonight in the Khalifa International Stadium, the oldest in the country.
Located west of central Doha, the stadium was built in 1976, and has hosted the Asian Games, Arabian Gulf Cup and AFC Asian Cup. It was redeveloped and expanded ahead of the World Cup, with a further 10,450 seats added, according to FIFA.
Inside, Khalifa’s impressive dual arches loom over the crowd, and it feels vast inside, a lot bigger than the Ahmad Bin Ali stadium, where Canada played their earlier games, even though the capacities of the two venues are the same. Fans are slightly further from the pitch here however, due to its dual use for other events, including athletics, which could affect noise levels during the game
11:44 a.m. EST
Croatia score again to make it 2-1
Marko Livaja of Croatia celebrates with teammates Mateo Kovacic and Ivan Perisic after scoring their team's second goal during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group F match between Croatia and Canada at Khalifa International Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Doha, Qatar.Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images
Minutes away from the end of the first half, Croatia’s Marko Livaja scores his team’s second goal of the night.
11:37 a.m. EST
Croatia’s Andrej Kramaric scores and ties game 1-1
Andrej Kramaric makes it level for Croatia, after several minutes of intense pressure from the Europeans.
11:25 a.m. EST
Canada’s lightning strike
In a game that Canada needs to take at least a point from to avoid elimination from the 2022 World Cup, Alphonso Davies’s goal after 68 seconds was easily the fastest scored so far in Qatar, surpassing Cody Gakpo’s sixth-minute goal for the Netherlands against Ecuador on Friday.
On top of that, Davies’s goal – his 13th for his country – was the fastest goal scored in a World Cup group stage match since Clint Dempsey scored for the United States after 29 seconds against Ghana at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
11:11 a.m. EST
A perfect start for Canada
Canada's Alphonso Davies celebrates scoring their first goal of the World Cup during the Canada vs. Croatia game at Khalifa International Stadium on Nov. 27.CARL RECINE/Reuters
As far as perfect starts go, that was exactly what head coach John Herdman - and all of Canada - was waiting for. In the men’s national team’s fifth-ever game at the World Cup finals, Alphonso Davies finally broke through after more than 360 minutes of game time, heading a cross from Tajon Buchanan past Dominik Livakovic’s despairing dive in just the second minute of play. For Davies, it was the ideal way to atone after he missed a penalty in the opening game against Belgium.
11:02 a.m. EST
Alphonso Davies scores Canada’s first ever World Cup goal
After a decades-long wait, Alphonso Davies scores Canada’s first ever World Cup goal in the 2nd minute with a piercing strike. It is the earliest goal of this World Cup.
11 a.m. EST
Kick off
After a stirring rendition of “Oh, Canada” by the travelling fans, events are underway here at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Canada are playing in black and Croatia in red-and-white.
10:45 a.m. EST
Herdman ‘probably should have kept that one for the team’
In the run-up to tonight’s match, much of the attention has been on Canada manager John Herdman, whose comments about going to “eff Croatia” caused a storm of controversy in that country.
Canada fans were bemused by the mini-scandal, with Ontarian Les Woods saying Herdman “was probably just caught up in the moment, he realized afterwards he should have refrained from those comments.”
Sarah and Les Woods pose outside the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar ahead of Canada’s match against Croatia.James Griffiths
Deanna Smith, from near London, Ont., said Herdman “probably should have kept that one for the team.”
10:35 a.m. EST
Canada fans are pumped in Qatar
Entering the stadium on Sunday, Deanna Smith from near London, Ont., said she was feeling confident about Canada’s chances against Croatia, despite their late loss to Belgium last week.
”I’m feeling great!” she told The Globe. “Morocco just beat Belgium, so anything can happen.” Many of the Canada fans arriving at the Khalifa International Stadium were frantically doing points-maths, after Morocco secured their surprise victory minutes before. Victory for the North Africans adds the pressure on Canada to win three points from tonight’s match, or face potential elimination.
Deanna Smith and Dina Dods-Brookes, both from Ontario, said they were feeling pumped for Canada as they entered the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar.James Griffiths
”This is going to be an even tougher game for the boys,” said Les Woods, from Port Credit, Ont. “Psychologically, the game has changed. Our manager is going to have a big job to do tonight, keeping the kids humble, keeping them focused.”Woods said he was encouraged by the “great performance last game out,” when Canada dominated the pitch for much of the match, but could not secure that long sought-after first World Cup goal.
10:15 a.m. EST
Opinion: John Herdman’s comments about Croatia have turned this into a grudge match
On Wednesday night, Canadian coach John Herdman told a TV interviewer his team was “going to go and eff Croatia” in their next game. It was played as a bit of a joke.
Herdman repeated it in his news conference. Even the second time, a few people laughed.
By Thursday, it wasn’t looking quite so funny. This is what happens when you don’t leave North America all that often. You forget that jokes don’t translate well around the world, and that trying to be funny can get you in trouble.
Since then, a Croatian newspaper put out a profane pictures of Herdman on its cover and Croatia’s coach held a news conference during which he used the word “respect” a dozen times in response to a question about the comments.
Four days ago, this was a game Canada could have lost, even lost badly, and emerged from with dignity intact. Now they have put themselves in a position where they must show well.
If they win, Herdman will be rightly celebrated as a mental tactician of the first rank. That must be the play. Otherwise, he really is just popping off for its own sake. If they lose, then what? They were just kidding? “Hey, those guys over there called our bluff. We’ll get ‘em next time.”
That’s not how you do it at this level. Or, at least, it’s not how everyone else does it. Everyone else has been here an awful lot more of the past 36 years than Canada has. We’ll find out today if everyone else is right.
10:05 a.m. EST
Canada must earn its first-ever World Cup point to stay alive
After earning a measure of global respect in a narrow 1-0 loss against Belgium in last week’s opening match, the Canadian men’s team will kick off its first meeting with Croatia knowing it needs to earn a first-ever World Cup point to stay alive in the competition. Morocco’s 2-0 win over Belgium in the earlier Group F game does little to change Canada’s perspective, with the team knowing two wins from its final two group games would take it into the last 16, although the margin for error is now virtually non-existent. How precisely that translates to head coach John Herdman’s gameplan against Croatia remains to be seen, but after generating more shots than anyone not named Brazil and Germany in the opening round of games, Canada showed it’s not about to play timid in Qatar.
A better finishing touch in front of goal may well be required though, with Canada now having played a record four games at the men’s World Cup without scoring. With that in mind, Herdman has drafted in Cyle Larin in place of Junior Hoilett to play alongside Jonathan David at the head of the Canadian attack. Larin, whose 13 goals were the second-most scored globally throughout the World Cup qualifying campaign, certainly knows where the net is, with his 25 international goals the most scored by a Canadian man.
Getting that breakthrough goal may prove to be a tough test here though, with Croatia, World Cup runners-up in Russia four years ago, possessing one of the most accomplished midfields in the tournament. Luka Modric, a Ballon d’Or winner with Real Madrid, needs little introduction, and is still operating at the top of his game at 37 years old, ably abetted by Mateo Kovacic and Marcelo Brozovic in a more defensive role.
But while a scoreless draw would keep Canada mathematically alive heading into Thursday’s final game, a win is really required to give the team some momentum before meeting Morocco, which now leads Group F with four points.
9:55 a.m. EST
Canada announces starting lineup with Hutchison, Davies
Canada has announced its starting lineup for today:
- Atiba Hutchinson (13)
- Milan Borjan (18)
- Alistair Johnston (2)
- Kamal Miller (4)
- Steven Vitória (5)
- Stephen Eustáquio (7)
- Tajon Buchanan (11)
- Cyle Larin (17)
- Alphonso Davies (19)
- Jonathan David (20)
- Richie Laryea (22)