The African dream remains alive in Qatar, as Morocco could yet become the first nation from the continent to win the World Cup. However, they will come up against a massive test in the quarterfinals on Saturday, as they face a resurgent Portugal, who smashed Switzerland to book their spot in the last eight.
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Morocco has undeniably been one of the big stories at the World Cup in Qatar, as the African nation has joined an elite group of teams from the continent to reach the last eight. However, they will be looking to achieve something that no previous African nation has managed this weekend, and reach the semi-final stage at the World Cup.
Morocco is yet to lose a game at the World Cup this year, and they have conceded just once in the four fixtures that they have played. Despite having a dynamic forward line, it was their defensive structure that assisted them in edging past Spain in the round of 16. The nations played out a 0-0 draw after 120 minutes, before Morocco were the cooler of the nations from the penalty spot, with Achraf Hakimi scoring a delightful Panenka to seal the win.
For just the third time in their history, Portugal will be playing in the quarterfinals at the World Cup. It is their first appearance at this stage of the competition since 2006, and they certainly look to be a nation that has hit form at the best possible moment. Portugal arguably delivered the performance of the World Cup in the round of 16, as they smashed six against Switzerland.
Fernando Santos made the bold decision to drop Cristiano Ronaldo for that huge fixture, and it was vindicated as Goncalo Ramos scored the first hat-trick of the 2022 World Cup. Pepe, Raphael Guerreiro, and Rafael Leao also scored in a stunning expansive performance by the Portuguese.
Morocco vs Portugal Head to Head
This will be the third time that Morocco and Portugal have clashed. Both previous meetings came at the World Cup, with Morocco winning in the group stages of the 1986 competition, before Portugal claimed a 1-0 success in the 2018 tournament.
Morocco vs Portugal Prediction
This could be the most interesting of all the quarterfinals at the 2022 World Cup. Morocco has been excellent in reaching this stage, and they will certainly put up more of a fight than the Swiss did in the previous round. However, there is something about Portugal this year, and we can’t see their journey coming to an end before at least the semi-final stage.
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