PORTUGAL VS MOROCCO
Portugal will face Morocco today in the third quarterfinal match of the Qatar World Cup. The match will be played at Al Thumama Stadium at 8:30 p.m. IST.
Morocco's arrival has conquered European giants like Belgium and Spain. And they haven't lost a single match. If this unbeaten run continues today, the African team can create history and enter the semi-finals of the World Cup.
The team's hope lies in strong players like Hakim Sayak, Ashraf Hakimi, N. Nasiri, Nausair Masroy, and goalkeeper Bono. On the other hand, with this being Cristiano Ronaldo's last World Cup, it will undoubtedly be an all-out battle on the field. Anyway, it is not sure if Ronaldo will be in the starting eleven today. Ronaldo's substitute Gonzalo Ramos scored a hat-trick and an assist in the last match, so Santos may give the same player a chance in the starting XI.
Otherwise, there is a slight possibility of replacing Ronaldo with another player. However, on paper, Morocco is not a big opponent for Portugal, who arrive with a handful of players who have proven their ability in Europe. However, they cannot be written off in their brilliant form. Santos and his team are confident after defeating Switzerland by six goals in the pre-quarterfinals. When the two teams met in 2018, Portugal won by a lone goal.
The winners of the France-England match will meet in the semi-finals. Anyway, let's wait and see.
WIN PROBABILITY
Portugal:-56%
Morocco:-17%
Extra Time:-27%
MATCH SCHEDULE
Date:-10/12/2022
Time:-8.30 PM (IST)
Venue:- Al Thumama Stadium
INSIGHTS
1) This is the third meeting between Morocco and Portugal, with the previous two coming at the World Cup. Morocco won their first group stage match in 1986 (3-1) and Portugal won 1-0 at the 2018 tournament, where they also shared a group.
2) There have been 11 previous matches between African and European teams in the knockout stages of the World Cup, nine of which have been won by the European team. The two exceptions were Senegal's 2-1 extra-time win over Sweden in 2002 (round of 16) and Morocco's penalty shootout victory over Spain in the last round this year.
3) Morocco is aiming to become the first African team to qualify for the semi-finals of the World Cup tournament. Indeed, the three previous African teams to reach the quarterfinals have all been eliminated at this stage: Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010.
4) This is Portugal's third quarter-final at the World Cup, while they have advanced in the previous two: 5-3 on penalties against Korea in 1966 and 3-1 in a penalty shootout against England in 2006. Portugal scored as much. They scored as many goals in their last match against Switzerland (six) as they had in their previous eight matches in the World Cup knockout stages.
5) Morocco comes into the match on a five-match unbeaten run at the World Cup (W2 D3), their longest unbeaten streak in the competition. The four games came under Walid Regragui (W2 D2), who will become the first African manager to take charge of a World Cup quarterfinal in this competition.
