Morocco qualified for the round of 16 of the World Cup after defeating Canada two goals to one in their match played at Al-Thumama Stadium in the last round of Group F.
Morocco top the group with seven points, followed by Croatia with five points, then Belgium with four points, then bottom-placed Canada with no points.
The Moroccan national team has only made it through the group stage of the World Cup once, and that was at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
Morocco’s goals were scored by Hakim Ziyech in the fourth minute and Youssef Al-Nusairi in the 23rd minute, while Canada’s only goal was scored by Nayef Akrad in the 41st minute.
Morocco needed to win or draw to secure qualification without waiting for the result of the other match between the national teams of Croatia and Belgium, which took place at the same time and ended in a goalless draw.
Morocco and Croatia thus qualify for the round of 16, awaiting the two matches of Group E, where the “Khalifa International” stadium will host Spain-Japan, while Germany will play against Costa Rica at the “Al-Bayt” stadium.
Spain leads the group table with four points, while Japan finishes in second place with three points, then Costa Rica with the same balance in third place, while Germany closes the group table with one point.
For the German national team there will be no other choice but to win against Costa Rica, provided that Spain avoid losing against Japan, to advance to the second round, while Costa Rica will only need to draw if Spain beat Japan.
This is the second time Morocco has qualified for the round of 16
Before the match with Canada, Morocco’s coach, Walid Rekragui, said it “would be a mistake” to play for a draw against Canada.
“We are facing a team that has nothing to lose,” he added.
“The players will do their best until the final whistle,” he added.
“It would be a mistake to play for a point. It would be a mistake to go into the game thinking you have to put in 20 or 30 percent of your effort just because a draw would be good for us,” said Regragui.
The Moroccan national team have so far not conceded a goal in the tournament under Walid Rekragui’s coaching
Arab teams say goodbye to tournament
Three Arab teams, namely Qatar, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia, were eliminated from the tournament in the first round, despite some of them performing well. Saudi Arabia achieved a historic victory over Argentina and Tunisia beat France.
Qatar was the first Arab team to bid farewell to the tournament after losing their three games played in the group stage, bid farewell to the World Cup without scoring a single point.
Tunisia were eliminated from the tournament despite their historic victory over holders France with a goal unanswered in the last round of the group stage. The Tunisian team scored four points, with a draw with Denmark, a defeat by Australia and a victory over France.
Despite the Saudi national team’s historic start by beating Argentina in the first round by 2 goals to one, they lost their next two games against Poland and Mexico, so Saudi Arabia failed to repeat their 1994 milestone in the U.S. of America when it qualified for the round of 16.
Saudi Arabia finished fourth and bottom of their group, with three points, leaving the tournament with the Mexican team third, while Argentina qualified top and Poland finished as runners-up.
Teams from France, Brazil, England, Portugal, Senegal, Holland, USA and Australia secured promotion to the second round, while teams from Qatar, Canada, Ecuador, Iran, Wales, Tunisia, Denmark, Mexico and Saudi Arabia they have been eliminated.
