Stephen Oustacchio, midfielder for the Canada national team, expressed great confidence in the team's abilities after qualifying for the Round of 16 in the FIFA World Cup with a 1-0 victory over South Africa on Sunday evening.
Oustacchio won the Man of the Match award for scoring the winning goal for his country at a crucial moment in the 92nd minute.
The Canadian player stated in comments to FIFA's official website: 'This victory was achieved after a great effort, and we wanted to win strongly to dedicate it to the Canadian people.'
He added: 'We continued to apply pressure on our opponent, and I scored a wonderful goal, with a shot that felt like the entire Canadian population was shooting with me; all the players put in extra effort until I shot powerfully into the net, so I am very happy.'
He continued: 'We will try to make our next opponent, whether it’s Morocco or the Netherlands, realize that if they qualify, one of them is facing its toughest match in the tournament.'
Stephen Oustacchio concluded his comments: 'I think we performed wonderfully against South Africa, and we have an exciting match ahead next week.'
Canada's national team qualified for the knockout stages for the first time in its history, finishing second in Group B with 4 points after drawing 1 - 1 with Bosnia and Herzegovina, winning 6 - 0 against Qatar, and losing 1 - 2 to Switzerland.