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June 19. Canadians touched the ball 97 times in the restricted area in Qatar.
On June 19, Canadians touched the ball in Qatar's penalty area 97 times.
The single-game record for the Men's World Cup since statistics began (1966) was shattered, exceeding the previous mark by 26 touches. Do the math: over the entire match, a Canadian player touched the ball in the opponent's penalty area roughly every 55 seconds. Possession was 79%, expected goals were 4.46 to 0.18.
This wasn't football. It was sheer execution.
Qatar's defense collapsed in the 31st minute. Defender Homam Ahmed slid into Buchanan on a breakaway. The referee initially showed a yellow card, but VAR intervened, upgrading it to a straight red. Down to ten men.
Goals started rolling off an assembly line. Larin tapped in from close range, David scored twice in the first half — 3-0. In the second half, Saliba scored directly from a free kick, Qatar's Manea shanked a clearance into his own net, and David completed his hat trick in stoppage time. 6-0. The most brutal scoreboard of the tournament so far.
But the 6-0 celebration was cut short by a sharp crack in the 50th minute.
Madibo slid into Koné from behind. Koné's trailing leg got caught on Madibo's at a completely unnatural angle. He didn't roll, clutch his ankle, or scream at the referee. He just lay there, staring at the grass.
When the medical team rushed in, his left leg was bent at an angle the human body shouldn't make.
Double fracture of the tibia and fibula. Canada coach Marsch said after the match: "The injury happened right in front of our bench. Everyone heard the bone snap."
The stretcher came onto the pitch. Koné bit down on his jersey and gave a thumbs-up to the stands. The stadium fell dead silent. Madibo received a straight red card. Surgery was completed, and the recovery will be long. Koné's 2026 was over, prematurely.
The drama after the match was even harsher than what happened on the field.
Madibo walked into Canada's locker room himself. We've seen plenty of players crying on camera in the mixed zone, going through the motions. But Madibo actually pushed open that door. Marsch confirmed at the press conference: "He apologized in person. Ismaël told the whole team."
We've seen all those staged statements after a broken leg — "that's not my style" — but Madibo at least had the guts to take the heat.
An apology doesn't erase the damage, though. FIFA's disciplinary committee slapped him with an additional five-match ban, much harsher than the standard straight red. Madibo's World Cup is over. The bow in the locker room might have eased some anger, but the five-match suspension is black and white.
Marsch let loose at the press conference: "There are 40 million Canadians who will all say they were there. This is a groundbreaking moment for everyone."
A country of over 40 million people had waited too long for its first-ever World Cup win — and got a 6-0 massacre. But Marsch clearly couldn't swallow the anger over Koné's broken leg. He called out Qatar's bench at the press conference: "I found the reaction from their bench very strange." No swearing, but the rage was written between the lines.
Watching the footage of Koné being carried off on a stretcher, no one could ask the coach to hold back his anger.
At the Guadalajara stadium, it was a different story. No broken leg, no massacre — just 1-0 and an incredibly ugly victory.
Mexico vs. South Korea. In the 50th minute, Luis Romo pounced on a fumble from Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu and poked the ball into the net. Then what? Mexico parked the bus in their own penalty area.
South Korea had 55% possession, 9 shots to 8, and expected goals of 0.69 to 0.48. They dominated the stats, but Mexico won 1-0, becoming the first team to advance to the knockout stage of this World Cup.
On the pitch, audit reports don't matter. No matter how beautiful the xG, it doesn't turn into points on the table. The hosts had the aura, but Mexico knew the deal: with the expanded 48-team format, advancing from the group stage is the lifeline. Giving up possession and pocketing three points — this ice-cold pragmatism is how the veterans survive.
Switzerland vs. Bosnia was a classic "physical attrition battle."
For the first 70 minutes, Bosnia held on despite being down a man. Then when the Bosnians' lungs were about to burst, Switzerland smelled blood and opened the floodgates. In the final 20 minutes, Manzambi scored with a volley, Vargas added another, Manzambi bagged a brace, and Xhaka converted a penalty in stoppage time. 4-1. All four goals came in the last 20 minutes. Bosnia's 70-minute battle became useless the moment their fitness collapsed.
After Xhaka scored the penalty, he made a "talking" gesture with his hand toward the stands, opening and closing it. Before the match, some pundits had called him a "toxic presence" in the locker room. That gesture was his middle finger.
The match between Czech Republic and South Africa was all about the frustrations of the underdogs.
Sádlík scored just 5 minutes and 8 seconds into the match. The Czechs thought they'd run away with it, but when they slowed down, South Africa gritted their teeth and held on for 77 minutes. In the 83rd minute, Mokoena equalized from a penalty. 1-1.
South Africa got their first point of the World Cup. They took the lead in the sixth minute, held it for nearly 80 minutes, and lost it with ten seconds to go. The essence of being a minnow is written in those seventy-plus minutes.
When the match day ended, Madibo pushed open the door to Canada's locker room.
Koné wasn't there.
He was on the operating table. Later, he typed a message on social media: "Allah has never let me down."