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1 hour ago
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Key events
71 min Time for you know what.
70 min A couple of corner in quick succession for Canada, who are having probably their best spell of the match.
68 min Millar has made a difference since coming on. He slips a low cross from the left towards David, who takes a touch at the near post and has a left-foot shot well blocked by Elvedi. Superbly blocked in fact.
66 min Manzambi goes down and wants some treatment, which leads to a chorus of empathy boos in Vancouver. The consensus in the UK commentary team is that he was trying it on.
61 min A snap volley from Cornelius spins behind for a Canada corner. That leads a bit of a scramble before Kobel punches clear.
58 min: Triple substitution for Canada Stephen Eustaquio, Liam Millar and Tanitoluwa Oluwaseyi replace Cyle Larin, Ali Ahmed and Mathieu Choiniere.
The right-back Jaquez sprayed a long, angled pass behind the defence. Embolo held off a defender, declined to shoot and instead played a square pass to the supporting Manzambi. He swept a low shot that went through the hands of the diving Crepeau and into the net. Having got such a firm touch on it, Crepeau will feel he should have made the save.
GOAL! Switzerland 2-0 Canada (Manzambi 57)
Johan Manzambi gets another World Cup goal!
56 min Ali Ahmed clips a good cross from the left that evades Larin, who seemed to be distracted by his physical battle with Akanji.
53 min Canada have been quiet as an attacking force for a lot of the game. and right now a second Switzerland goal looks more likely than a Canada equaliser.
At the risk of offering insight, I wonder whether the relative lack of jeopardy has subdued them.
51 min “Wow,” says Andrew Goudie of Ollie’s half-time poem. “Rhyming ‘scary’ with ‘Dembélé’ is genius! Take a bow, son, take a bow. Who needs Mac Millings for top-level wordplay?”
50 min If it stays like this, Switerland will stay in Vancouver and Canada will be off to Los Angeles to play (potentially) South Korea.
49 min “Ayup,” writes Richie. “My mate is one of the flag-carrying volunteers here in Philadelphia and they can confirm that they are indeed very heavy. They are made of thick, durable canvas (thicker than your typical flag material) and they must have a minimum of 16 people on each long side and eight on the shorter sides, (mostly to have enough folk to prevent it from taking off if there is a strong wind).
“When they parade off the pitch it’s like a military unit; there are so many people marching by holding that rolled-up thing. Sadly after doing all that work (for which they show up to the stadium five and a half hours before kick-off) they have to turn in their credentials and leave the stadium. They are not allowed to stay and watch.”
Switzerland worked the ball efficiently down the right before Manzambi clipped a cross into the middle. It evaded Embolo at the near post and reached Vargas, who took a touch and rattled a decisive finish past Crepeau. A well-taken goal.
GOAL! Switzerland 1-0 Canada (Vargas 46)
Ruben Vargas scores after 40 seconds of the second half!
46 min The second half is under way, and…
“I had you split-screened with the BBC,” writes Steve. “I think it’ll be BBC-only in the second half. They’re beating you about 5-1. I expect better from the Guardian than smarmy comments and a complete dearth of anything resembling insight. A Guardian subscriber.”
Half-time reading
Ollie, aged 12, has sent in a World Cup poem. And it’s infinitely more entertaining than that first half.
World Cup fever here again,
Excitement turned right up to ten!
Who will win it? Who can say?
So hot, they’ve all turned to clay!
Three Lions roaring on my shirt,
Ending sixty years of hurt?
Is it our year? Shall we see?
Having good players is the key.
Harry’s on a scoring streak!
Bellingham has reached his peak!
Bukayo Saka on the wing,
England fans can really sing!
But France are looking pretty scary:
Mbappé, Doué and Dembélé!
Messi’s scoring more and more,
Ronaldo’s knocking on the door.
Ghana had us in their pocket,
But next game Rice will score a rocket!
Come on Thomas Tuchel’s men,
Football’s coming home again.
Half time: Switzerland 0-0 Canada
Your life is precious, my friend, and you have just wasted 45 minutes of it.
45+1 min “If I close my eyes,” writes Barbra Streis- Tom Hopkins, “I can still see Rijkaard’s flob glistening in Rudi Völler’s magnificent perm. Is that or Benjamin Massing’s valedictory wave after receiving a very harsh second yellow card the defining moment of Italia 90?”
Gary Lineker’s undercrackers would like a word.
45 min Four minutes of added time.
44 min Canada are having their best spell. Another sharp counter-attack ends with David spraying a left-foot shot wide from 20 yards.
41 min Johnston arrows a good pass into David, who turns and slides the ball further across to Ali Ahmed. His slightly tame shot is pushed round the near post by Kobel.
41 min It’s been a forgettable first half, and we should have always known it would be like this.
40 min A loose ball runs to Johnston, who splashes high and wide from 25 yards.
38 min Free-kick to Switzerland 30 yards out. Xhaka launches it into orbit.
37 min There’s an unpleasant clash of heads between Laryea and Embolo, though they seem to be okay.
36 min “What even is a goal?” asks Ian Copestake. “Is the journey the goal? Ball in the net is perfection realised but surely the rest of it has value. If not at least Wonderwall was top.”
33 min After two penetrative straight passes, first from Xhaka and then Manzambi, Vargas scurries away on the left. But his low cross is too close to the keeper and that’s the end of that.
33 min A decent break from Canada. David angles a pass to Larin, who has pulled cleverly from centre to left. He then cuts back inside and sweeps a shot from 15 yards that is saved by the falling Kobel.
32 min Both players are booked. That was mildly farcical. Larin poked the ball away just as Xhaka was about to kick it, so instead Xhaka kicked his shin.
Not sure what Xhaka has been booked for, but there was an endearing physical comedy to the whole thing.
31 min There’s a bit of posturing when Xhaka tries to take a free-kick and instead kicks Larin, who was lurking near the ball.
