Head coach of the Belgium national team, Robert Martinez, has admitted Canada were better than them in their opening 2022 World Cup fixtures.
Michy Batshuayi scored the only goal of the game in the first half, as the Red Devils took all three points.
Martinez said: “It was such a difficult game. Canada were better than us in what we wanted to do. They have a lot of pace and directness, and to be fair we had to show another side to our play.
“I’m delighted because we won the game through grit and experience, and the quality of our goalkeeper that can keep you in a game with a penalty save. The victory for me is more important than when you play well.
“Canada deserved to be better than us in the way they approached their performance. But in the end the result reflects what we had to do and the way we defended for each other, and we took our chance.
“You’ve seen many top teams losing games and in this tournament you develop and grow as they go in. If you do that by winning games it’s an incredible advantage. We didn’t play well, that’s clear, but we need to be realistic and appreciate the win. When a team can win a game without playing well it’s a lot to build on.”
Canada lost all three of their games without scoring in their only other World Cup finals appearance in 1986, and their wait for a first point and first goal goes on into their next game against Croatia on Sunday.
