Morocco and Portugal clashed in the high-intensity quarterfinals at the Al Thumama Stadium on Saturday for a chance to qualify for the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup 2022. Let’s see how the game panned out.
Morocco vs Portugal (1-0)
Morocco came into this match without conceding a goal. Portugal on the other hand won their Round of 16 match against Switzerland by 6-1. It was a matchup of teams with differing gameplays and that is how the entirety of the match was played out.
Morocco sat deep at the Al Thumama Stadium and invited Portugal to keep the ball. Morocco had a game plan to hit Portugal on the counter and they followed their plan to a T. Despite Portugal having the ball, Morocco’s strategy came to fruition in the 42nd minute when Youssef En-Nesyri headed the ball from close range over Portugal’s keeper and head his team in front.
From then on, Morocco defended for all their life and did not let Portugal get a sniff of the goal. Portugal had to bring in Cristiano Ronaldo, the most popular sportsperson in the entire world, but he too failed to motivate his team.
Portugal had 74% of the possession and close to three times the passes of Morocco. Despite all that however Portugal could not get a goal back in the 90 minutes. As a result, Portugal and Ronaldo are out of the FIFA World Cup 2022 while Morocco’s insane run goes on in Qatar.
They have become the first African team to head into the semi-final of a FIFA World Cup. They will now play against the winner of the France vs England match in the semi-final.
The result brought heartbreak for Cristiano Ronaldo whose dream of winning a World Cup will remain unfinished.
