Canada has yet to take the final step towards a World Cup ticket, but its first World Cup participation in 36 years is yet to come. There were no goals in the prestige duel Mexico-USA.
The winning goal scorer for Ticos: Celso Borges.
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Canada – still without Bayern professional Alfonso Davies (after a swollen heart muscle) – missed out on World Cup preliminary qualification with a 0-1 draw against Costa Rica, but that shouldn’t be too dramatic. Because the leader of the table is missing only one more point for participation in the second World Cup in its history – and the first for 36 years, after a one-man loss with North and Central America in the final round. Marc-Anthony Kaye received a second yellow card in the 34th minute, with Celso Borges scoring the winning goal for Ticos just before half time.
Canada coach John Hardman said, “We can take our fate into our own hands. We will meet on Sunday (against Jamaica, Note D. Editor) will take care of it, and then if we don’t make it, we’ll make it in Panama. We’re going to Qatar.”
Costa Rica moved up to fourth on the table with a home win and kept the hopes of a trip to Qatar alive. The top three CONCACAF teams qualify directly for the World Cup at the end of the year, with the fourth-placed teams going into the play-offs against a team from Oceania (probably New Zealand).
America now against Panama
Too many fights, no goals: Christian Pulisic against Jorge Sanchez (left).
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The United States and Mexico are tied for second and third place with a score of 0–0 after a disappointing 90-minute duel. Both teams are three points behind Canada and three points ahead of Costa Rica, with 22 points each.
There are still two days left of the game. USA face Panama, who slipped to fifth place after a 1-1 draw with Honduras, but still have a chance to qualify directly. Honduras is at the bottom of the table and hosts Mexico in the final qualifiers.
These countries already have a confirmed World Cup ticket