Stephen Eustaquio was overcome by emotions regarding his late parents after his biggest career moment in the form of a stoppage time 1-0 winner for Canada against South Africa in the World Cup round of 32.
Asked by a reporter what the victory means to him after all he has gone through, the 29-year-old shed a few tears and then dedicated the win to his family.
“Everything I do is for my family, for my parents, for my girlfriend, for my daughter. For my friends back home. For everyone,” Eustaquio said.
The Porto midfielder, currently on loan at Los Angeles FC, lost his mother, Esmeralda, in 2023 due to a brain tumour. He learnt about her death after being substituted in a Porto match and later revealed that she suffered a lot and that it was a very painful time for the family.
His father, Armando, died a year later after a heart attack, a few days after Eustaquios' daughter was born.
The parents thus never watched him play at the biggest stage, as his mother was already too ill when he played 2022 in Qatar.
Canada coach Jesse Marsch said that Eustaquio deserves to have scored the historic goal in the nation's first ever World Cup knock-out match.
"Maybe Steph is the most deserving to have a moment like that. So I'm really happy for him, and I think from somewhere his parents are looking down, and they saw that," Marsch said.
The victory sends Canada into the last 16 where they will face either the Netherlands or Morocco on Saturday.
