Jesse Marsch: Everything Under Control, Valuable Point for Canada

Canada's head coach, Jesse Marsch, expressed satisfaction with his team's second-half resurgence, which secured a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina in their opening Group B World Cup fixture.

"I told the lads that if we had played the entire match like we did in the second half, we would have won," Marsch stated.

"I explained to them that we need to learn these lessons, and we need to learn them quickly. Everything is still under control; this is a truly valuable point for us," he added.

Canada's first goal at the World Cup came from 31-year-old Cyle Larin, who now ranks second on the all-time scoring list, trailing only Jonathan David.

"Cyle wasn't happy about not starting," Marsch commented on the striker, who has netted eight goals for Southampton in the Championship this season. "But I told him, 'Look, you've had a great year at Southampton, whether starting or coming off the bench, you've made an impact in every game, and now you need to realize that.' And he did."

Marsch also noted that his team upped the tempo in the second half, creating more promising attacks in their pursuit of an equalizer.

"We saw Bosnia fading. So I told them, 'Now is the time to go for it. It's time to get on our feet and push for a goal,'" he said, as quoted by BTA, adding that he knew his team's youth, fitness, and speed had the potential to wear down Bosnia.

"I'm disappointed with the first half. I just felt we were hesitant. We didn't play as aggressively as I would have liked," Marsch further explained.

He highlighted that his second-half substitutions turned the tide, but he wants his team to display the same level of performance from the opening whistle in their next match against Qatar on June 18: "I needed to figure out how to get a bit more from some of the starters and ensure we have a better performance from the very beginning."