Canada beat South Africa 1-0 thanks to a long-range stoppage-time goal from Stephen Eustaquio, earning their first-ever spot in the FIFA World Cup round of 16. The match was played at Los Angeles Stadium on June 28.
Eustaquio collected the ball at the edge of South Africa's penalty area and unleashed a low shot that beat goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. Canadian players erupted in celebration. After the match, Eustaquio said: "When I shot, I felt everyone shot with me. Everyone added their power to push the ball into the net."
South Africa, who had appeared content to take the match into extra time and penalties, made a few late attempts to equalize but failed. The African side had been hoping to reach the knockout stage of a World Cup for the first time.
In the round of 16, Canada will face the winner of the match between the Netherlands and Morocco on July 4 in Houston. "The belief started when we cleared the group stage. Anything can happen. If we keep working as we have, we could even win it all," Eustaquio added.
The first half was cautious with few chances. Canada nearly scored at the end of the first half from a corner kick, when Moise Bombito's header was cleared off the line by Aubrey Modiba, and then Tajon Buchanan's close-range shot was saved by Williams. Immediately after, Richie Laryea went down in the box, and Canada appealed for a penalty, but VAR confirmed no foul, drawing loud boos from thousands of Canadian fans.
After the break, South Africa played slowly, in no rush to attack. Canada created more chances when Tani Oluwaseyi shot straight at the goalkeeper and Jonathan David could not convert a header from the rebound due to Mbekezeli Mbokazi's excellent clearance.
Canada coach Jesse Marsch told his players: "Think about how we talk about sticking to the plan — you showed character. You are Canadian heroes here."
