LIVE: Morocco Takes Lead vs. Portugal, Ronaldo Benched Again
Youssef En-Nesyri’s header in the 42nd minute gave the Atlas Lions the lead over Portugal in the World Cup quarterfinals. Follow along.
After a dramatic day of quarterfinals Saturday that saw Brazil fall and Argentina survive on penalties, the second day begins by pitting one of the stories of the tournament against one of the stories of the round of 16.
Morocco is this year’s shock underdog run. The Atlas Lions stunned Croatia and Belgium by winning Group F, then beat mighty Spain in a penalty shootout. It’s a remarkable story, especially given that manager Walid Regragui was hired just months before the tournament.
Portugal, on the other hand, cruised into the last 16, and manager Fernando Santos made waves with his decision to bench superstar Cristiano Ronaldo in favor of 21-year-old Gonçalo Ramos. The gamble paid off to the highest degree—Ramos netted a hat trick in his first start for Portugal in what became a 6–1 romp over Switzerland. Santos’s debate on whether to keep the aging Ronaldo has become more clearly one-sided. Now, with Portugal’s attack seemingly freed—Ronaldo begins on the bench once again on Saturday—it will provide a stern test for Morocco’s back line.
João Félix tested Moroccan goalkeeper Bono in the fifth minute when he sent a header on target from a Bruno Fernandes free kick that required a strong save from the Sevilla keeper.
But Morocco countered with a brilliant chance of their own off a corner as Sevilla forward Youssef En-Nesyri found himself with an open header that he sent over the bar.
In the 18th minute, Hakim Ziyech returned with another chance for Morocco, sending a low shot from just outside the box that didn’t miss the post by much.
João Félix created another close call in the 31st minute when he pounced on a loose ball and saw his shot deflected by a Moroccan defender as the ball fell just wide.
In the 35th minute, Morocco put together its clearest chance yet with a concerted drive down the field. Yahia Attiyat Allah sent in a cross that found Selim Amallah open inside the box, but Amallah’s shot went well over the bar.
Morocco kept pushing forward and, in the 42nd minute, was rewarded with the lead thanks to En-Nesyri. Attiyat Allah once again sent in a dangerous cross as En-Nesyri rose above Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa and defender Rúben Dias to take the 1–0 lead.
Follow along here for live updates and highlights of goals and key plays from throughout the match (refresh for most recent updates).
Here are the lineups for both sides:
Full World Cup squads
Morocco
GOALKEEPERS: Yassine Bounou (Sevilla), Munir Mohamedi (Al Wehda), Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti (Wydad AC)
DEFENDERS: Nayef Aguerd (West Ham), Yahia Attiyat Allah (Wydad AC), Badr Benoun (Qatar SC), Achraf Dari (Brest), Jawad El Yamiq (Real Valladolid), Achraf Hakimi (PSG), Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich), Roman Saiss (Besiktas)
MIDFIELDERS: Selim Amallah (Standard Liege), Sofyan Amrabat (Fiorentina), Bilal El Khannous (Genk), Yahya Jabrane (Wydad AC), Azzedine Ounahi (Angers), Abdelhamid Sabiri (Sampdoria), Anass Zaroury (Burnley)
FORWARDS: Abde Ezzalzouli (Osasuna), Zakaria Aboukhlal (Toulouse), Sofiane Boufal (Angers), Ilias Chair (Queens Park Rangers), Walid Cheddira (Bari), Youssef En-Nesyri (Sevilla), Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Ittihad), Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea)
Midfielder Amine Harit was hurt playing for Marseille after initially being selected and was forced to withdraw from the competition.
COACH: Walid Regragui
Portugal
GOALKEEPERS: Diogo Costa (FC Porto), Rui Patrício (AS Roma), José Sá (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
DEFENDERS: João Cancelo (Manchester City), Rúben Dias (Manchester City), Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Pepe (Porto), Danilo Pereira (PSG), António Silva (Benfica),
MIDFIELDERS: William Carvalho (Real Betis), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), João Mário (Benfica), Otávio Monteiro (Porto), Rúben Neves (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Matheus Nunes (Wolverhampton Wanderers), João Palhinha (Fulham), , Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Vitinha (PSG)
FORWARDS: João Félix (Atlético Madrid), Ricardo Horta (Braga), Rafael Leão (AC Milan), Gonçalo Ramos (Benfica), Cristiano Ronaldo (Unattached), André Silva (RB Leipzig)
COACH: Fernando Santos
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