Courtois denies better Canada side, secures undeserved Belgium win

AL RAYYAN, Qatar -- Despite a spirited effort from Canada successful their archetypal World Cup quality since 1986, Belgium won the opener of Group F connected Wednesday, 1-0, acknowledgment to 3 large saves from Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and astatine slightest 1 missed punishment telephone that should've gone successful Canada's favour.

Canada had an aboriginal accidental to instrumentality the pb aft being awarded a punishment footwear wrong of 10 minutes, but Alphonso Davies' effort was blocked by Courtois. Canada has inactive ne'er scored a World Cup goal. Just earlier the extremity of the archetypal half, Belgium's Michy Batshuayi scored disconnected a agelong ball.

Here is ESPN's Julien Laurens with absorption and investigation from Qatar.

JUMP TO: Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Post-match quotes | Key stats | Upcoming fixtures

Rapid Reaction

1. A cruel but arrogant nighttime for Canada

Football tin beryllium cruel sometimes -- and the Canadians, successful their archetypal World Cup lucifer since 1986, surely experienced that against Belgium.

Unlike different teams successful this tournament, they showed nary nerves from the opening whistle. They played attacking shot with movement, strength and passion, pushed by the sound and the enactment of the 10,000 Canadians wrong the Hamad Bin Ali Stadium. The crippled program of their manager John Herdman was spot on: No clip connected the shot for Kevin De Bruyne oregon Eden Hazard, pressing precocious and utilising the width of the transportation well.

Stephen Eustaquio (what a player) and the seasoned Atiba Hutchinson -- 39 years old, the oldest subordinate successful this World Cup and lone subordinate of the squad live For Canada's past World Cup quality successful 1986 -- bossed the midfield. They created chances and generated 2.35 expected goals, oregon xG, for Canada against conscionable 0.58 xG for their opponent.

Canada were the amended squad for astir of the game, and tin beryllium arrogant of themselves -- but they volition person regrets. One antiaircraft mistake connected Toby Alderweireld's agelong shot and they conceded a extremity conscionable earlier the break. As Nelson Mandela utilized to say: "You ne'er lose. You triumph oregon you learn."

This Canada squad should person learned a heck of a batch against Belgium.

2. Courtois, king of pens and Belgium's saviour

Without him, Real Madrid would not person won the Champions League past play and Belgium would not person made a winning commencement successful this World Cup.

Courtois came large again for his country, similar truthful galore times successful the past, redeeming Davies' punishment aft 11 minutes confirming that helium is the king of pens. In 2022, helium has saved 5 spot kicks disconnected the 9 helium faced -- that's an awesome 55.55% ratio of saved penalties, and by acold the highest successful Europe. Since joining Real Madrid successful 2018, helium has faced 22 penalties and saved six -- but 4 of those six person happened successful 2022.

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Courtois made different prevention a spot aboriginal connected successful the lucifer connected an Alistair Johnston changeable from a choky angle, and a comfy 1 successful the 2nd fractional connected a Cyle Larin header that was 1 of Canada's champion chances of the night.

In what was a precise mediocre show by Belgium, Courtois was the lone light, really. The remainder was truthful mediocre -- the 3rd squad of the past World Cup was not a menace going forward, struggled defensively and conceded chances and unsafe situations.

It was precise unconvincing and laboured from Belgium -- but erstwhile you person the existent champion goalkeeper successful the world, it makes your beingness overmuch easier.

3. An disconnected nighttime for Hazard and De Bruyne

We wanted to spot Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne instrumentality the tract for antithetic reasons.

For De Bruyne, the task was to beryllium the conductor of this Belgian side, to instrumentality power of the crippled and beryllium the originative force. Instead, helium got beauteous overmuch everything wrong. He forgot a escaped Youri Tielemans doubly successful the archetypal half. Just aft the hr mark, helium wasted a large antagonistic onslaught with a mediocre shot for Batshuayi and aboriginal blasted his changeable successful a bully presumption implicit the bar.

It was a show precise dissimilar the KDB we've travel to cognize astatine Manchester City, possibly successful ample portion due to the fact that the supporting formed astir him is not of the aforesaid level than the 1 helium has astatine his nine but still: we expect much from him. It is his relation to transportation this team.

For Hazard, the purpose was to amusement that, adjacent abbreviated of lucifer fitness, helium could inactive person an interaction connected a crippled similar this one. Alas, contempt a mates of bully touches and turns, the show from the skipper was not bully enough.

He came disconnected aft 60 minutes with nary chances created, lone 76% of close passes and lone 2 palmy dribbles. He was fouled 4 times though, which showed that determination is inactive immoderate beingness successful him but it is not capable close now.

Manager Roberto Martinez has been precise loyal with the 31-year-old who seldom plays astatine Real Madrid, keeping him successful the squad astatine each cost. It is improbable helium volition driblet him for the Morocco crippled connected Sunday but Hazard, similar De Bruyne, volition beryllium nether unit to bash amended than against Canada.

Player ratings

Belgium: Courtois 8, Dendoncker 5, Alderweireld 6, Vertonghen 4 ,Castagne 5, Tielemans 3, Witsel 4, Carrasco 4, De Bruyne 4, Hazard 4, Batshuayi 6

Subs: Onana 5, Openda 4, Meunier 4, Trossard 4

Canada: Borjan 5, Johnston 6, Vitoria 5, Miller 6, Hoilett 6, Larin 5, Hutchinson 7, Eustaquio 7, Laryea 6, , Buchanan 6, Millar 5, Davies 6, David 5

Subs: Osorio 5, Kone 5, Adekugbe 5

Best and worst performers

BEST: Stephen Eustaquio, Canada

The Porto midfielder bossed this crippled until his replacement aft 81 minutes. The 25-year-old Eustaquio was everywhere, recovering the shot 9 times and creating 2 chances for his squad portion playing with intensity, quality and flair. This has been his breakthrough play successful Portugal and against Belgium helium showed again however talented helium is.

WORST: Youri Tielemans, Belgium

It was a pugnacious nighttime for the Leicester midfielder, truthful overmuch that his manager decided to instrumentality him disconnected astatine fractional clip to bring connected Amadou Onana. Tielemans simply had nary interaction connected the game, uncovering himself positioned excessively high, lone making 13 passes successful 45 minutes, hardly immoderate forward. It was a truly disappointing performance.

Highlights and notable moments

Canada came retired from the archetypal whistle with strength and pace, and they enactment the unit connected Belgium immediately. It seemed Canada would travel retired successful beforehand soon erstwhile a manus shot was called successful the 10th minute.

Alphonso Davies, the Bayern Munich full-back and starring antheral for Canada, stepped up to the spot, but Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois continued his caller tally of bully signifier connected redeeming penalties, and helium denied Davies.

Canada had been dominating the archetypal fractional and were the acold much unsafe side, adjacent beyond their missed punishment chance. Through the 43rd minute, Canada's expected goals (xG) was 1.81 portion Belgium's was lone 0.15.

But shot oregon shot -- immoderate you privation to telephone it -- is simply a comic game: a squad tin beryllium the "worse" broadside but inactive beryllium the broadside winning. With a agelong lofted shot implicit the apical successful the 44th minute, Michy Batshuayi enactment Belgium up 1-0 against the tally of play.

BATSHUAYI PUTS BELGIUM OUT IN FRONT 🇧🇪 pic.twitter.com/s6ED21MAYH

After the match: What the managers said

Canada manager John Herdman connected the result: "Proud of the performance, but you request to instrumentality 3 points from your archetypal game. We had the accidental contiguous to beryllium apical of the radical -- that was the ngo -- and we missed it. But I'm arrogant of the performance. As I've said, these lads enactment a displacement successful and showed they tin unrecorded connected this stage. I deliberation they made the fans arrogant and it made them consciousness similar they beryllium here, and that was important for us."

Herdman connected what helium told his players aft the match: "I conscionable showed them the stats. I showed them they beryllium here. I told them they beryllium here, and we're gonna spell and 'F' Croatia. That's arsenic elemental arsenic it gets. That's our adjacent ngo now." (Editor's note: Canada is successful Group F for the World Cup.)

Belgium manager Roberto Martinez connected the win: "Canada deserved to beryllium amended than america successful the mode they played. I deliberation the effect reflects the things that we had to bash and the mode we defended for each different and took our chance. It's a triumph and we request to play amended and to grow. We've been present 5 days, we person to turn with these games. Many apical teams are losing games."

Key stats (provided by ESPN Stats & Information)

• Canada is the archetypal squad since 1978 to effort 20+ shots (22) and a punishment footwear and not people astatine a World Cup game.

• Canada's 2.59 expected goals (xG) against Belgium is the highest expected goals full to beryllium shutout this tournament.

• Canada is the archetypal squad to effort astatine slightest 14 shots successful the archetypal fractional but not people a extremity and way astatine halftime successful a World Cup lucifer since 1986.

• Belgium's starting 11 against Canada had an mean property of 30 years and 181 days. That is the oldest starting 11 successful a 2022 World Cup crippled yet, and the oldest for Belgium since June 20, 1998 against Mexico.

Up next

Belgium: Group F resumes connected Sunday, Nov. 27, wherever Belgium volition look Morocco astatine 8 a.m. ET. Then, Belgium faces Croatia connected Thursday, Dec. 1 astatine 10 a.m. ET.

Canada: Group F resumes connected Sunday, Nov. 27, wherever Canada volition look Croatia astatine 11 a.m. ET. Then, Canada faces Morocco connected Thursday, Dec. 1 astatine 10 a.m. ET.