Canada's Soccer Team Has Had Wild Ride in 2022
It’s been a wild 2022 for the Canada Men’s National Soccer Team. It qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 36 years, dealt with a bunch of postponed games, and won plenty of times to get fans excited ahead of the most famous tournament in its soccer history.
We run through the 2022 season so far for Canada, with the World Cup just over three months away.
The Highs of 2022
This year will be remembered as one of the best in Canadian soccer history. World Cup qualification for the first time in 36 years is one thing, but with it also beating the United States, Canada has been screaming and shouting louder than anyone else in North America.
The Maple Leafs went unbeaten for the first three games of 2022, starting with a victory over Honduras, as they aimed to edge closer to a World Cup dream. An own goal and another goal for the Canadian hero, Jonathan David, secured all three points for Canada in its first game of 2022. Elation quickly faded and pressure kicked in, as Canada faced arguably its biggest game in history, taking on the USMNT in the World Cup Qualifiers with both sitting in the top two automatic qualification spots.
The Tim Hortons Field witnessed a famous, historic and atmospheric 90 minutes, as Cyle Larin blew the roof off with a goal after just seven minutes. Sam Adgekugbe made it 2-0 with seconds remaining to put Canada clear of the USMNT at the top of the table in arguably its greatest soccer win over its North American rivals.
A victory against El Salvador with captain Atiba Hutchinson and hero David scoring a goal each sent the nation into a soccer frenzy, knowing that a win against Jamaica would be enough to see them on the plane to Qatar in November.
You’d have thought Canadian players would have been fearful of the day; they were not. Larin scored once again, and with Tajon Buchanan netting another before halftime, the BMO Field erupted. Fans were given absolute certainty when Junior Hoilett scored a goal with 10 minutes left to go, before an own goal by Jamaica made it 4-0 and sent tears down faces and beers in the sky.
Another high of Canada’s year was beating Curacao 4-0 in the Nations League, with Alphonso Davies memorably returning to the squad after a bout with injury and scoring.
The Lows of the Year so Far
Despite sealing a ticket to the World Cup a game later against Jamaica, Canada put its hopes of qualification into question with a loss to Costa Rica just a few days before.
It was still likely to secure a spot at the World Cup regardless of this result, but by losing to Costa Rica, Canada saw a red card for Mark-Anthony Kaye, lost 1-0, and brought the USMNT closer to it in the table.
Panama also beat the Maple Leafs in the World Cup Qualifiers as Canada was restricted to just one shot on target. The result was irrelevant as it had already qualified for the World Cup in Qatar, but given how it also 2-1 to Honduras in the CONCACAF Nations League, Canada is currently in poor form.
What’s the Overall Feel?
The hope is there for Canada now, but the form has turned slightly sour after World Cup qualification.
It is still riding the high of actually getting a spot at the finals, and with matches against Qatar and Uruguay to come before the World Cup, there’s a possibility Canada can pick up some wins before November.
