Haiti 3, Canada 2 | 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup Match Recap

Phil West

Haiti came back from a two-goal halftime deficit, shocking Canada 3-2 at NRG Stadium in Saturday evening's quarterfinal match to secure their first-ever place in the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup semifinals.

Canada got on the board first in the 18th minute from a set piece — former Vancouver Whitecaps FC standout Alphonso Davies quick-kicked the ball to Jonathan David, who gained momentum down the right wing before letting his shot fly. Ten minutes after that first goal, Lucas Cavallini doubled the lead; he gathered a Scott Arfield pass that split the defense, rounded Haiti goalkeeper Johnny Placide, and easily tucked the ball in.

An early second-half defensive lapse let Haiti back into the match. Canadian defender Marcus Godinho hoofed a lazy backpass to 'keeper Milan Borjan, which Haitian forward Duckens Nazon pounced on – he was able to finish and get his team into the match. Less than 20 minutes after that initial mistake, Godinho committed a foul inside the box on Haitian forward Herve Bazile, who converted his PK to bring Haiti level. Then, Haiti was able to grab the lead — for good, it would turn out — on a 76th-minute goal by Wilde-Donald Guerrier.

It looked as if Atiba Hutchison had scored an 84th-minute set piece goal to give Canada new life, but he was ruled offside on the play. Canada continued to push forward after that disappointment, but couldn't salvage their Gold Cup in the end.

One consolation for Canada: David upped his Gold Cup goal total to six for the tournament, putting him (for now) in the Golden Boot lead.

Goals

18' – CAN – Jonathan David | WATCH
28' – CAN – Lucas Cavallini | WATCH
50' – HAI – Duckens Nazon | WATCH
70' – HAI – Herve Bazile (PK) | WATCH
76' – HAI – Wilde-Donald Guerrier | WATCH

Three Things

THE BIG PICTURE: It looked like the Canadians were making a charge to the top of the Concacaf mountain in this tournament, but they were dispatched after a Jekyll-and-Hyde match against an opponent they were handily beating at halftime. Haiti will face a tough opponent in the semis, but this Gold Cup trip for the 101st-best team in the world (according to the FIFA rankings) is already a success.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Godinho's foul on Bazile, and the subsequent PK conversion, rattled Godinho and his Canadian counterparts, and gave Haiti the belief to press on for the match-winner.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Nazon hustled onto a bad Canadian error for his team's first goal, his push down the left flank helped pressure the tying goal, and he assisted on the final, deciding goal.