It was a scene plucked from a movie, played out at Los Angeles Stadium, in the home of Hollywood, and against the grand setting of the FIFA World Cup 2026. With the clock running down in stoppage time and the score tied 0-0, Canada’s Stephen Eustaquio received the ball on the edge of South Africa’s penalty box. Then, he hammered it past diving goalkeeper Ronwen Williams to send his team into the World Cup’s round of 16 for the first time in their history.Eustaquio’s winner provided a thrilling conclusion to the first knockout-round match of the tournament on Sunday. It might just be the most prolific one of his career so far.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listHere’s everything we know about the 29-year-old man of the hour: Canada’s Stephen Eustaquio celebrates after his goal gives Canada the 1-0 lead in their round of 32 match against South Africa, in Los Angeles, US, on June 28 [Scott Strazzante/EPA]From Canada to Portugal, and back againBorn in Leamington, Ontario, to Portuguese parents, football was almost Eustaquio’s birthright He began playing at the age of four and flip-flopped between his home country and his parents’ throughout his career.His youth experience started at Leamington Minor Soccer before the family moved to Portugal. Seven-year-old Eustaquio and his older brother, Mauro, played at a club level before Eustaquio signed with Portuguese second-tier club Leixoes in 2017 and then moved to GD Chaves in 2018.A year later, Eustaquio moved to Cruz Azul in the Mexican Liga MX, before going on loan to Pacos de F …
