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The Canadian Men's National Soccer Team was in action on Wednesday, this time looking for another win in World Cup Qualifying action.
Sitting at seven points and in fourth place in the North American qualifying group, Canada had to go against third-ranked Panama. A win would put Canada in third place with while a loss would make qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar next winter much harder.
During the match, the Canadians started flatfooted as Rolando Blackburn notched one home in the fifth minute to give Panama a 1-0 lead. Canada got lucky in the 28th minute as Michael Amir Murillo put in an own goal in the 28th minute to level the score.
When it looked as though Canada was destined for another draw, their superstar came up clutch. Alphonso Davies, who normally plays for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, started an amazing run in the 66th minute.
Davies turned on the jets from inside his own half before sprinting down the sideline, stealing the ball from the defender, cutting to the middle and striking it past the keeper with his left foot.
ON. REPEAT. FOREVER. #CANMNT #ForCanada pic.twitter.com/RsVItK76eG
— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) October 14, 2021
Once that domino fell, the floodgates opened. Tajon Buchanan found twine five minutes later and Jonathan David made it a 4-1 game in the 78th minute.
Now at 10 points, Canada sits at third place in the group. They still have eight games remaining, which includes battles with USA and Mexico.
If Canada finishes third in the group, they will automatically qualify for the World Cup. A fourth-place finish means they will participate in an intercontinental playoff.
For those who don't know, the World Cup begins on Nov. 21, 2022, at 2 am.