Azzedine Ounahi scored twice in the second half as Morocco overcame a sluggish start to defeat Canada 3-0 in Houston on Saturday, securing a place in the FIFA World Cup quarterfinals for the second consecutive tournament.
Morocco, now unbeaten in 34 matches, will face the winner of the France-Paraguay clash in the quarterfinals on June 9 in Boston.
Ounahi broke the deadlock in the 50th minute before doubling Morocco’s advantage with a clinical finish in the 82nd minute. Soufiane Rahimi sealed the victory deep into stoppage time as Canada pushed forward in search of a way back into the match.
Canada’s impressive World Cup campaign came to an end despite a strong start. After making history by advancing beyond the group stage for the first time, the Canadians also claimed their maiden knockout-stage victory with a 1-0 win over South Africa in the round of 32.
Morocco is No. 6 in the Fifa world rankings; Canada 30th.
There were four yellow cards apiece and Canada had 24 fouls to 14 for Morocco.
After a listless first half, Morocco stunned Canada with a goal from nowhere on only their second shot of the match.
Achraf Hakimi lined up for a free kick to the right of the goal after a yellow card, the seventh of the match, to Canada’s Luc de Fougerolles for a sloppy foul on Soufiane Rahimi.
Hakimi put the ball on the ground to Ounahi on the edge of the box and he one-timed a shot to the right corner with the Canadians caught a step behind.
In the 77th minute, Canada’s Jonathan David sent a free kick from outside the box over the bar and a minute later, teammate Tajon Buchanan’s long strike forced a diving stop at the left post by Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
That proved crucial when Ounahi took a layoff pass from Brahim Diaz to make it 2-0.
Morocco suffered a major blow in the 22nd minute when leading scorer Ismael Saibari had to leave with a possible hamstring injury. The 25-year-old attacking midfielder scored in all three group matches and on Wednesday it was announced he was joining Germany’s Bayern Munich from Dutch side PSV Eindhoven.
Canada looked nothing like a nervous team in their first round of 16 going against a 2022 World Cup semifinalist.
As is the style of American-born coach Jesse Marsch, the Canadians were on the attack from the start. Within five minutes, Bounou made a close-range save on David and followed soon after with a punch of a Stephen Eustaquio corner, but he made his best stop in the 12th after Canada’s pressure resulted in a giveaway.
Tani Oluwaseyi got the ball at the top of the box, made a sharp turn then fired a low shot that required Bounou to make the save with his outstretched left leg.
By the hydration break, Canada had all four shots, two on target, in the match.
source: Geo News
