Quick-fire second-half goals from Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan sent Canada into the CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory over an El Salvador side that finished Tuesday night’s match with nine men.
The win secures Canada top spot in Group B with seven points. El Salvador were eliminated, finishing last in the group with one point and failing to score a goal in the tournament.
After a tense first half, the match was decided in a blistering three-minute spell after the break. In the 53rd minute, Jonathan David took a pass from Mathieu Choinière, turned, and fired a diagonal shot past goalkeeper Mario González for his Canadian record 35th international goal. David had earlier seen a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time saved by González.
Just two minutes and 35 seconds later, Tajon Buchanan doubled Canada’s lead, lifting the ball over the goalkeeper after Niko Sigur intercepted a pass deep in El Salvador’s half.
El Salvador’s challenge was severely hampered by two red cards in the first half. Santos Ortíz was sent off in the 35th minute for a second bookable offence, and Jairo Henríquez received a straight red card in stoppage time for elbowing Alistair Johnston. Both players will now be suspended for the start of World Cup qualifying in September.
Canada now advances to a quarter-final clash against Guatemala on Sunday in Minneapolis. The winner of that match will face either the United States or Costa Rica in the semi-finals.
The other quarter-final matchups will see Mexico play against guest nation Saudi Arabia, and Panama take on Honduras, with both games taking place on Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.
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