The Canadian men's national soccer team played its first game in Montreal since 2017, but it wasn't the homecoming they expected, losing 1-0 to Australia on Friday night at Saputo Stadium.
Nestori Irakunda's winner extended Australia's unbeaten run to 12 games, having lost just once since March 21, 2024.
The game only took three minutes for controversy to rear its head. Tajon Buchanan intercepted the ball behind the Australian back line and was brought down in the penalty area, but the referee stopped play.
As the game continued, Australia switched to an extremely conservative 5-4-1 formation, trying to get as many players behind the ball as possible. They challenged Canada to a particularly determined low block and managed to frustrate Canada while giving up a large amount of possession in the process.
The 30-minute mark brought the first clear chance when Ismael Kone burst through the Australian defence. A sudden deflection sent the ball towards the bottom corner before Paul Izzo cleared it off the line.
Just after the 60-minute mark, Australia had the best chance of the game to score the first goal. A quick move up the pitch and an impressive pass left Alessandro Circati alone in front of goal, but his shot went over the crossbar.
The game opened up significantly in the final 20 minutes as both teams looked for a potential winner and began trading scoring chances.
Australia took advantage in the 71st minute, stretching the field and stealing the ball from Niko Sigur after pressing hard. With Sigur's back turned, Irakunda knocked the ball past Maxime Crépeau with a tackle to give the visitors a surprise lead in the game.
Although Canada had several good looks on goal in the closing stages of the game, they were unable to find the breakthrough needed to tie the game.
The best opportunity came in the 90th minute when Liam Millar's cross found a wide-open Jacob Schaffelburg, who fired a shot from point-blank range at the sprawling Izzo.
Kamada: Travels to New Jersey on Oct. 14 to play 13th-ranked Colombia.
Australia: Faces USA on October 14 in Colorado.
