Morocco's defense held strong and kept Portugal scoreless for the win
Legacies begin and end 🌟⚽️🏟️🏆
If the first two games of the 2022 World Cup quarter-finals are any hint as to what we would get with the final two quarter-finals matches, then we surely would be in for a treat.
Morocco is the most surprising team at this World Cup so far, even more so than Croatia. Nobody expected Morocco to win their group or eliminate Spain. Even though they have done so many great things at this tournament, still many had their doubts about whether Morocco was a serious contender or not.
Portugal has been ranked above average and played very well throughout the tournament. They aren't quite at elite levels of talent, but they have many great players. We have seen that you don't have to have the most talent to win these big games, the games are more equal than they seem on paper.
Portugal once again has benched Ronaldo, but maybe it will be for good reasons for a second time. Morocco surely will be on their toes as they dance around the pitch aiming for another surprise win.
Let's recap another game from the knockout stage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar...
Morocco🇲🇦 vs Portugal🇵🇹
My Prediction: Portugal
The first 40 or so odd minutes of this game were fairly even. Possession was tilted heavily towards Portugal, but it was Morocco who had more attempts on goal. Things changed in the 42nd minute when Youssef En-Nesyri received a long cross and was able to head the ball past the Portuguese goalkeeper. Just like that, the underdog was in the lead.
https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1601603559648382981?s=20&t=AfjC3G4sJG-VGPUzkuYLhg
After the goal, Portugal's pace amped up quite a bit. You could tell they did not like being down and craved scoring an equalizer before the half's end. Cristiano Ronaldo sat helplessly on the bench awaiting his chance which would surely come in the second half. Ronaldo officially entered the game around the 50th minute.
Ronaldo never really made a big impact on the game outside of a couple of shots and just his presence inside the box altering some things. There were no major changes to the game until the 93rd minute when Walid Cheddira of Morocco received his second yellow card, which resulted in a red and ejection. Morocco was left to defend their lead for the next five or so minutes being a man down. I'm not sure why a card was handed out for this foul, but the ref decided it needed to be.
https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1601621044531695616?s=20&t=PyoKCJ6fQvYSGxYU6SxGOA
Portugal had a couple of attempts on goal right at the end, but none were able to produce a goal. Ronaldo and Portugal have officially been eliminated. This means that Morocco did the unthinkable and is now the first African team to advance to the semi-finals of the World Cup. Morocco will face France in the next round.
Result: 1-0 in favor of Morocco
No World Cup for Ronaldo 🥹😭
Many had hoped that Ronaldo would be able to add a World Cup to his list of achievements throughout his inspiring career. That is no longer an option and he must accept the fact that he was unable to bring a cup home to his nation. Now we must wait and see if Messi can one-up Ronaldo and win this thing for Argentina. If that happens, then the Messi vs Ronaldo discussion will finally be over.
As for Morocco, they very well may be the best African team to ever play. Their defense is on top of the world and their offense always seems to find what they need to win. It will be extremely interesting to see if they can pull off another upset in their next match. If that happens, Morocco could become the first African team to ever win a World Cup.
Don't forget about the @hivebuzz World Cup contest https://peakd.com/hive-102201/@hivebuzz/wc2022
Are you as surprised as I am that Morocco is still in this?
Comment below if you think Morocco's run is one of the biggest Cinderella stories in football history.
My NFTs: https://inji.com/@daltono/nfts
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Can't believe that happened man. I mean I don't want to see that Portugal win the trophy but it was shocking to see they lose against Morocco. Definitely unexpected.
As many goals as Portugal had been scoring, I really did not expect Morocco's defense to be able to hold them to zero. Well-played and deserved by Morocco. I'm not sure they'll be able to do the same against France.
Morocco's journey has been sensational in this World Cup. Beating Portugal was quite a surprise for me. I just sympathize with Ronaldo, the heartache is unbearable lol. Let's see if Messi would be able to bring the cup home and make history. From a ranking perspective, France have the highest chance of winning the trophy but this tournament is full of surprises so any four of them can win it.
I did feel for Ronaldo, but I think in his mind he assumed they weren't going to win it all as soon as he got benched. Messi has a good chance to do it still, but he's first got to take out Croatia and then either France of Morocco. No easy task.
It is totally surprising that Morocco is in the semifinals of the World Cup, but with a defense like this they could even dream of winning it
I'm sure some predicted Morocco to make it this far, but that number is surely small. Their defense is up for their biggest test yet against France.
Morocco team looks very strong in this world cup. Can't believe Morocco in the semifinals and Portugal out of worldcup. Now i will support Morocco and pray for morocco to win this world cup. Thanks for sharing your review about wordcup.
I've always thought that Morocco was such a beautiful country, but now I think they are a great soccer nation too.
I see Morocco in the final
It would be the most surprising finalist ever if that happens.
Just can’t wait to see Morocco 🇲🇦 have their way to the cup! Hahaha.
Sorry for Ronaldo. It was a pain…
And Messi still on the go. After a terrible fall to Saudi Arabia in the first place…
Yeah there is still a chance for Messi to really put a halt to the Messi vs Ronaldo 😂
I think a lot of us enjoy seeing the underdog rise. Morocco has earned a lot of respect these last few weeks. I hope that France does not underestimate them.
moroccos So far it has behaved like a solid team, they make good synergy in their plays without depending so much on 1 single player.
You're so correct about that. I love watching teams that genuinely enjoy each other and just play well together. That can take you very far and even sometimes past skill-dependent teams.
total surprise but soccer always allows us to have the opportunity to dream about stories of not so strong teams
It is one of the greatest sports in the world. I wish that people here in the USA cared about soccer more.
💪😊😁😎🤙
wow! He looks kinda happy..
That dude is on top of the world. I'm sure him and his team all feel that way.