Canada dispatches Costa Rica, advances to Gold Cup semifinal after 14 years

Stephen Eustaquio set up one goal and scored the other Sunday to move Canada into the semifinals of the Gold Cup with an impressive 2-0 win over Costa Rica.

Eustaquio put Junior Hoilett in alone for the first goal at the 18th-minute mark, then scored himself in the 68th minute as the Canadian men took control early and never let go.

Canada faces 11th-ranked Mexico in Thursday’s semifinal. The Mexicans blanked No. 67 Honduras 3-0 on Saturday.

The other semifinal pits either the 20th-ranked U.S. or No. 45 Jamaica against No. 58 Qatar, a guest entry as 2022 World Cup host. Qatar advanced by beating No. 69 El Salvador 3-2, hanging on after building a 3-0 lead Saturday.

The U. S-Jamaica match followed Canada’s game indoors at AT&T Stadium, home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.

The Canadian men, ranked 70th in the world compared to No. 50 for Costa Rica, were full value for the victory. A veteran Costa Rica side had trouble getting going, showing little offence.

The only blemish on the evening was captain/defender Steven Vitoria and striker Lucas Cavallini were both yellow-carded by American referee Jair Marrufo, meaning they will miss the semifinal for a second caution.

Long time coming

The Canadian men last made the semifinals in 2007 when they lost 2-1 to the U.S. Canada also made the final four in 2002, when it beat South Korea to finish third.

The Canadians exited in the quarter-finals of the last two editions of the tournament.

Canada won the Gold Cup in 2000. It was also victorious in 1985 in its previous incarnation as the CONCACAF Championship.

“It’s not too often in your career you get these moments. In such an amazing venue,” Canada coach John Herdman said before Sunday’s match. “So they’ve got to go and enjoy it. But that enjoyment isn’t having fun too much. It’s the enjoyment of putting the work in and then reaping the benefits from that hard work.”

His team wasted little time enjoying itself.

Canada dominated early with almost 70 per cent possession in the first 10 minutes. And it went ahead in the 18th minute after Eustaquio found Hoilett behind the defence with a wonderful long ball.

Racing into the penalty box to get to the pass after timing his run to avoid the offside flag, Hoilett let the ball bounce and then coolly chipped Costa Rican goalkeeper Esteban Alvarado for his 14th goal for Canada before the two collided. The 31-year-old Hoilett, who is looking for a new club following the expiration of his deal with Cardiff City, has four goals and four assists in his last seven Canadian matches.

The 24-year-old Eustaquio, who plays for FC Pacos de Ferreira in Portugal, continued to pull the strings from the Canadian midfield with help from LAFC’s Mark Anthony-Kaye. Eustaquio also threatened from set-piece deliveries.

The second goal came after Eustaquio headed the ball towards Hoilett in the Costa Rican penalty box. Hoilett’s attempt at a backheel ricocheted off two defenders to Eustaquio, whose shot went through the legs of Alvarado for his third goal in nine Canadian appearances.

After Canada opened the scoring, Vitoria forced a save from Alvarado with a volley from the edge of the penalty box. And the Canadians came close in the 39th minute when a sliding Cavallini just failed to get a foot on a fine Tajon Buchanan cross.

Kaye shot just high in the 42nd minute, acrobatically twisting his body to flick out his foot after a feed from Jonathan Osorio.

Costa Rica made three changes at halftime with veteran midfielder Bryan Ruiz among the newcomers tasked with turning around the Central Americans’ fortunes.

Canadian ‘keeper Max Crepeau was called into action in the 54th minute, protectively palming away a Joel Campbell free kick that may have been a touch high.

Eustaquio and Hoilett linked up again in the 59th minute with Alvarado handling Hoilett’s shot.

Line up changed from defeat to the U.S.

Herdman made four changes to the team that lost 1-0 to the U.S. last Sunday. Eustaquio returned from suspension with Cavallini, Kaye and Osorio also slotting in.

Canada’s starting 11 went into the match with a combined cap count of 196, with Osorio (40), Hoilett (34), Cavallini (25) and Kaye (22) accounting for 121 of those.

Canada was without forward Ayo Akinola and Cyle Larin, both injured in the loss to the U.S. Orlando City forward Tesho Akindele, a late injury replacement, replaced Hoilett in the 70th minute and came close to scoring in stoppage time, denied only by Alvarado’s foot.

Canada (3-1-0) finished runner-up to the U.S. in Group B, defeating Martinique and Haiti both by a 4-1 score before falling 1-0 to the Americans in Kansas City. The loss to the Americans snapped Canada’s eight-game winning streak in 2021.

Costa Rica (3-1-0) won Group C on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Jamaica.

The Canadian men came into the game with a 5-7-9 record against Costa Rica, with wins for either side hard to come by in recent years. Canada was winless in five (0-1-4) against the Costa Ricans.

The teams tied 1-1 the last time they met, in Houston at the 2017 Gold Cup. Canada had not posted a win since the 2007 Gold Cup, a 2-1 decision at the Orange Bowl thanks to a pair of goals by Julian de Guzman.