Canada on the brink of 2022 World Cup thanks to bizarre shoulder goal

A 2-0 win away at El Salvador kept them top of the group in the final round of CONCACAF qualification, with an eight point buffer in the automatic places, and only nine points still to play for.

Canada may be heading towards a new mini 'golden generation' with Bayern Munich's flying left back Alphonso Davies their stand out player, followed by Lille's sought after striker Jonathan David.

Davies is currently out of action due to heart damage from a bout of Covid-19, but even so Canada are thriving without their best player.

The victory away in El Salvador was capped off by a stoppage time insurance goal from David, but the first will likely never be repeated.

Besiktas forward Cyle Larin latched onto a ball forward just after the hour mark when he fought off a defender, and after a brief stumble, looked up to see his Turkish Super Lig teammate Atiba Hutchinson bombing into the box.

The pair likely have a good relationship from the one-and-a-half seasons spent together at Besiktas, but not so good that what happened next could ever be deemed intentional.

Captain Hutchinson latched onto Larin's cross, glancing a near-post header off of the woodwork, robbing the 38-year-old veteran of what would have been a rare but brilliant run and finish.

However, what happened next was even more memorable, with the ball bouncing back off the post and onto the unsuspecting boot of El Salvador defender Eriq Zavaleta.

The ricochet then hit Hutchinson's back while he was lying on the ground, cannoning up and over opposition goalkeeper Kevin Carabantes.

The keeper was caught looking in completely the wrong direction as the ball popped up and over him, but he nearly ruled it out anyway, with his swiped attempt at a save failing to stop one of the strangest goals ever scored.

Hutchinson was just as surprised as anyone, as he revealed post-match.

"It hit off the post and after that I don't know what happened," the midfielder said.

"I think it bounced off my shoulder and found its way in the back of the net somehow.

"Obviously a very lucky goal, but it crossed the line."

Hutchinson's fantastic run was later bettered by the Arsenal-linked Lille forward David, who carried the ball from his own half before delicately dinking the goalkeeper to end the match in the 93rd minute.

Canada have only made the World Cup once before, in 1986 where they finished the tournament with zero wins and zero goals.

Led by Englishman John Herdman, that looks set to change, even without their best player Davies for the near future.

Herdman said post-match: "This is a tough place to come, watching on TV you don't really get a real sense of the atmosphere, but I'm proud, our mission was to own their ground.

"Destiny is in our hands, it's where we wanted to be at this stage. We'll keep believing. Our country is behind us."

Canada are a near certainty to now reach their second ever World Cup, and with some of the luck on show in their previous match, they might even break their scoring duck.