Morocco upset Spain and advance to the World Cup quarterfinals

To upset Spain and advance to the World Cup quarterfinals

Morocco defeated reigning champion Spain on penalties in the Round of 16 to advance to the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time.

The last African team in the World Cup of 2022 played outstanding defence the entire game and had two excellent chances to win it in overtime, with Walid Cheddira coming close on both occasions.

However, it didn’t matter because Spain missed their first three penalty attempts in the shootout, allowing Achraf Hakimi to coolly score the game-winning goal with a daring Panenka chip and advance his team to Saturday’s third round against Portugal or Switzerland.

The game’s trend was clear from the opening whistle, with Spain controlling possession but struggling to get past a well-organized Moroccan backline.

Even though the offside flag was up, Luis Enrique’s team controlled about 70% of the ball in the opening 45 minutes but couldn’t go any closer than Marco Asensio’s effort into the side netting. Gavi and Ferran Torres were both stopped by superb stops at the same time.

Noussair Mazraoui’s ferocious long-range drive hurt Unai Simon’s hands, and Nayef Aguerd, unmarked at the far post, headed over a wonderful opportunity made possible by Sofiane Boufal’s deception. It was evident that Morocco’s game plan was to absorb pressure and try to hit the Spanish on the break.

The same pattern persisted into the second half, with Alvaro Morata firing a shot across the face of the goal shortly after his arrival, while Yassine Bounou of Morocco made a fine reaction save on free kicks from Dani Olmo at either end of the half.

The African team’s outstanding defence at the opposite end turned out to be essential. Morocco had the two finest chances of the first session of extra time, with Cheddira first being stopped by Aymeric Laporte’s challenge and then by the right leg of Simon.

With Spain’s first attempt in the shootout, Pablo Sarabia struck the post. After saves from Carlos Soler and Sergio Busquets, Hakimi, a Madrid native, had an opportunity to score the game-winning penalty with a Panenka kick.