Jonathan David’s second-half goal has moved Canada closer to the World Cup.
In front of 48,806 people at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium on Friday, David’s 57th-minute goal was all Canada needed to overcome Costa Rica 1-0 in a World Cup qualifier.
The goal came after Leonel Moreira, the Costa Rican goalkeeper, misjudged a pass into the penalty area, allowing David to slide the ball in.
With the victory, Canada maintains its third-place position in the CONCACAF Octagon. Canada has 13 points (3-0-4) after seven games, while Costa Rica is 1-3-3.
The top 3 teams in the standings will qualify for the World Cup in Qatar next year. The fourth-place team will play another wild-card team from another region in a last-chance playoff.
Moreira was called up for Costa Rica due to an injury to the national team’s regular starting goalkeeper, Paris St. Germain’s Keylor Navas.
The goal came minutes after Canadian winger Tajon Buchanan’s soaring bicycle kick stopped Moreira in his tracks, but the ball hit the post for the second time in the game.
In the 15th minute, the first close call occurred. Alphonso Davies’ corner kick ricocheted against the crossbar after connecting with a scrum of Costa Rican defenders.
Davies has not played a competitive game in Edmonton since he was in his early teens. However, whenever the Bayern Munich star got close to the ball in the first half, he was usually crowded out by two or three defenders.
In the 15th minute, he had a chance to score, but his shot was stopped by defender Oscar Duarte’s sliding effort.
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