In the end, it was the goalkeeper who got him.
During a postmatch TV interview, Milan Borjan snuck up and doused Canada manager John Herdman with champagne. That he’d stayed dry for so long was a minor miracle considering the occasion. With a 4-0 victory over Jamaica on March 27 in the penultimate match of FIFA World Cup qualification, Canada locked up its place in the World Cup for the first time since the 1986 tournament.
“He deserved this,” said Borjan, his trademark sweatpants paired with a “WE CAN” T-shirt and ski goggles to protect against champagne backsplash. “This guy, he did everything.”
Well, not quite everything.
Herdman will be one of the few managers in Qatar — along with Qatar boss Felix Sanchez — who has no experience as a high-level professional player, but he has done almost everything else. For one, Herdman is the first manager to qualify both a women’s national team and a men’s national team in World Cups.
Over the course of his rich career, the 46-year-old also has worked with academy players, maintained a career as a lecturer in sports science and sought wisdom from across disciplines, whether it was speaking with former New Zealand international Dr. Ceri Evans about the techniques he used to help the All Blacks rugby team, or taking tips on how to use analytics from Oakland A’s general manager (and “Moneyball” guru) Billy Beane.
Even two years ago it felt impossible, but by this March it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Herdman would be at the center of those jubilant celebrations. World Cup qualification formats announced prior to the coronavirus pandemic put Canada on an extremely difficult route to Qatar. But the team was rolling along so quickly that there was no stopping it, and after dispatching the likes of the Cayman Islands and Aruba, nobody — not even Mexico or the United States — could stop Canada from topping the World Cup qualification table and being the first side from the region to confirm its World Cup berth….
Source : espn
