Morocco defeats Canada 3-0 to advance to World Cup quarter-finals
via Punch Nigeria2 min read
Morocco secured a 3-0 victory over co-hosts Canada in Houston, progressing to the World Cup quarter-finals. This result marks Canada's exit from the tournament. Morocco, who were semi-finalists in 2022, will now face either France or Paraguay. The first half saw more bookings than shots, but Azzedine Ounahi opened the scoring for Morocco in the 50th minute. Despite Canada's efforts to equalize, Ounahi scored his second goal, and substitute Soufiane Rahimi added a third with the final kick of the match. Canada, playing in front of 68,777 spectators, had been the better side in the initial period and had made history by winning a World Cup match and a knockout game for the first time to reach the last 16. Morocco's Montreal-born goalkeeper Yassine Bounou made an early save from Tani Oluwaseyi. Morocco faced an injury blow when Ismael Saibari, who had scored three times in the tournament, was replaced by Rahimi. A confrontation between Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi and Canada's Richie Laryea resulted in yellow cards for both players. The referee issued six bookings in total during the first half. Morocco's performance improved significantly in the second half, with Hakimi assisting Ounahi's first goal. Ounahi scored his second in the 82nd minute, followed by Rahimi's goal in the 98th minute.
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