Sports

Ronaldo’s dream of winning the FIFA World Cup 2022 broken, Morocco created history and showed the way out to Portugal’s team

Doha. Morocco became the first African and Arab nation to reach the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup on Saturday after Youssef N Nesri’s header beat Portugal 1-0 in the dying minutes despite playing with 10 men. Morocco were forced to play with 10 men for the last six minutes of injury time in the second half but world number nine Portugal could not take advantage of it. Youssef N Nesri scored the winning goal in the 42nd minute for world number 22 Morocco at the Al Thumama Stadium. It was Morocco’s first goal in a World Cup knockout.

Morocco, the only team from outside Europe or South America to reach the last eight in Qatar, is the first African country to make it to the semi-finals of football’s epic. Earlier, Cameroon made it to the last eight in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010 but none of the three teams reached the semi-finals. The team has conceded just one goal during their campaign so far and that too against Canada by an own goal. The team’s defense was stout in the quarter-finals against Portugal as well, which was led by goalkeeper Yassin Bonneau.

Morocco will now face the winner of the quarter-final match between former champions England and defending champions France on 15 December in the semi-finals. After this defeat of Portugal, it is almost certain that Cristiano Ronaldo, the only player in the world to score goals in five World Cups, will never be able to lift the World Cup trophy. The 37-year-old was probably playing his last World Cup. Portugal coach Fernando Santos once again named 21-year-old Gonzalo Ramos in the starting XI in place of five-time ‘World Footballer of the Year’ Ronaldo, who scored a hat-trick in the pre-quarter-finals against Switzerland but ended in disappointment. .

The Portuguese team made a brisk start to the match and tried to dominate. The team took advantage in the fourth minute in the form of a free kick but Joao Felix failed to clear Moroccan goalkeeper Yassin Bonnou with his header. Portugal made another move down the left flank in the 13th minute. Ruben Neves passed the ball to Rafael Guerreiro but Ramos failed to control his sharp shot. Meanwhile, Morocco also made some moves but the team could not find any goal. Felix’s move was cleared by Azedine Onahi but could not prevent Portugal from earning a corner. Bruno Fernandes takes a corner but the Moroccan defense foils the attack.

Morocco then turned the game on the counterattack with a brilliant move down the left flank in the 42nd minute. Yusuf N Nesri bounced the ball in front of the goalkeeper and scored a header. Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa tried to stop Youssef N Nesri but the Moroccan player was faster than him. Argentina had a great chance to equalize a few minutes later but Bruno failed to find the target.

In the second minute of injury time, Morocco had a golden chance to double the lead but Yahya Atiyat Allah’s thunderous shot went wide of the goalkeeper’s right. The beginning of the second half was the opposite. This time the Moroccan team was more aggressive. Morocco were awarded a free-kick in the 48th minute of the match for a foul by Portugal captain Pepe on Achraf Hakimi. Youssef N Nesri was unable to score on Hakim Zeyesh’s free kick despite goalkeeper Costa’s mistake. Portugal brought Ronaldo on in the 51st minute and in the very next minute he made a move down the left flank but his weak shot was easily saved by goalkeeper Bonneau.

Three minutes later, another Portugal effort was easily saved by Bonneau. Ramos had a chance to score with a header in the 58th minute but his shot went wide of the goalkeeper. Argentina’s team once again came very close to scoring in the 64th minute. Bruno fired a thunderous shot in front of the goal but it went wide of the cross bar. Bonneau once again denied Portugal an equalizer when he dived high in the air and fired home with his right hand from Felix’s curling shot from the right. Felix got the ball back on his own pass on a move from the right end. Bonneau dominated the final moments of the match.

To keep World Cup hopes alive, Ronaldo made a move down the right flank in the first minute of injury time and carried the ball forward but Bonneau stood like a wall in front of his fiery right-footed shot. Walid Chedira was shown a second yellow card in the match for a foul on Felix in the dying minutes which turned into a red card. The team had to play with 10 players in the last six minutes. Chedira had earlier also fouled Pepe. Zakaria Aboukhlal got the easiest of chances to double Morocco’s lead.

He single-handedly took a long pass deep in Portugal’s half to the goal line. Now he just had to dodge Costa but he shot straight into his hand. Just before the end of injury time, Pepe had a chance to take the match into extra time with a header, but he fired the ball wide of the goalkeeper’s right, ensuring Portugal’s defeat.

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