Qatar crushed 6–0 by Canada as Koné injury casts shadow

Canada 6–0, Koné suffers double leg fracture

Qatar were dismantled by Canada 6–0 on Thursday night in a match completely overshadowed by a horrific injury to Canadian midfielder Ismaël Koné (1) (2) (3). Koné broke both his tibia and fibula following a challenge with Assim Madibo, and the sound echoed through the stadium (1) (5).

Canada coach Jesse Marsch did not hold back: "We heard the bone break. All the joy from the win disappeared" (4) (6). Koné was taken straight to hospital and will leave the World Cup (13).

For your team, the night was a disaster. Canada were 2–0 up at the break and never let up. Jonathan David hit a hat-trick, putting him level with Lionel Messi at the top of the scoring chart (15) (16). Cyle Larin added his second goal of the tournament (17).

The match ended in a scuffle at full-time, with Qatari goalkeeper Mahmud Abunada visibly in tears by his goal before a teammate and Canada's Jacob Shaffelberg came over to console him (Reddit post 2).

David matches Messi at the top

Jonathan David's hat-trick against Qatar takes him to four goals at this World Cup, tied with Messi in the race for the Golden Boot (15) (16). Three goals in one night, and Canada's first World Cup win in their history (3) (8).

Mexico become first team through

Elsewhere on the same matchday, Mexico beat South Korea to become the first nation to book a spot in the last 32 (2) (7) (8). Switzerland beat Bosnia 4–1, Ghana edged Panama 1–0, Colombia won 3–1 against Uzbekistan, and Norway saw off Iraq 4–1 (11) (12) (18).

What comes next

Qatar have to pick themselves up quickly. Two group matches remain, and the goal now is about restoring pride. The 6–0 scoreline is ugly, but the tournament moves fast.

Fan-reaktioner

A scuffle after the full-time whistle drew attention online, with footage circulating of the confrontation between both sets of players. Qatari keeper Mahmud Abunada's tears in front of his own goal became the defining image of the night for many fans, a moment that captured just how brutal that scoreline felt. More broadly, the tournament has now seen six red cards, already more than the entirety of the 2022 or 2018 World Cups, which some supporters are pointing to as a sign of how tense these group stage matches have become. Link