Oscar Maya Belchi
Doha, Nov 27 (EFE) , has a lot of football and opposes to be in the round of 16 of the World Cup after winning 0-2 with goals from Abdelhamid Sabiri in the 73rd minute, taking advantage of an error by the Belgian goalkeeper, and Zakaria Aboukhlal in the second minute of added time.
The game started weird. Bono, the Sevilla goalkeeper, lined up with the rest of his teammates to listen to the anthem, chanted by most of the Moroccan fans who gathered at the Al Thumama stadium, but he was not there in the team photo seconds later.
Munir played as a starter, who soon had to intervene. He beat Batshuayi in a one-on-one.
It was a warning that Belgium was going to show a more serious face than against Canada, although this time luck was not on their side. He dominated the ball, but it was difficult for him to generate static and also from set pieces. Three corner kicks ended up in Hazard’s boots on the second play. Bad signal with Witsel, Onana, Alderweireld and Vertonghen on the green.
The minutes passed and anxiety seized the Belgian footballers, who this Sunday could not find Kevin De Bruyne released either. He already said that he can’t play like he does at Manchester City, where every three days he proves to be among the best in the world, but in this World Cup he isn’t showing the best version of himself either.
Without his beacon, and with a Hazard who received cracks every time he turned around, without the yellow cards for his rivals that he demanded in the run-up to the match, Belgium got stuck. And it was Morocco that came closest to the goal.
What’s more, he even opened the scoring. But the Mexican referee César Arturo Ramos canceled Hakim Ziyech’s free kick goal because Romain Saiss, who intervened in the play by making a move to go for the ball, placing himself in Courtois’s field of vision, was offside.
An action that left Morocco hot on the way to the changing rooms. His coach, Walid Regragui, left applauding and with a face that the plan was going well for him. And his players only took 28 minutes to agree with him.
Roberto Martínez said that Courtois was the best goalkeeper in the world. It was decisive against Canada and that’s what Belgium grabbed to survive, but in a game with fewer cracks on a global level, it was precisely Courtois who failed.
Direct free kick, from the side, by Abdelhamid Sabiri looking for the near post of the Belgian goalkeeper, who took a step forward waiting for the center and that condemned him. In addition, Saiss appeared again to bother, starting from a legal position, and the 0-1 did remain on the scoreboard.
In case the large Moroccan fans needed something, they enjoyed the last few minutes as if they were hosting the World Cup. Belgium tried to get a tie more in fits and starts than with clear ideas. Romelu Lukaku debuted in the World Cup, with ten minutes to see if he hunted any inside the area, but he didn’t even touch a chance.
Zakaria Aboukhlal did, already with Belgium upside down, in the 92nd minute. A pass behind Ziyech and the Toulouse striker beat Courtois with a perfect finish. High shot attached to a stick.
A result that leaves Morocco with four points in Group F, Belgium with three, both waiting for what happens in Croatia-Canada to make their guesses in search of the round of 16, but what is certain is that the third classified in Russia 2018 will experience three days of even more criticism until the match that will define her future in Qatar 2022.
– Data sheet:
0 – Belgium: Courtois; Meunier (Lukaku, m.81), Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Castagne, Thorgan Hazard (Trossard, m.75); Witsel, Onana (Tielemans, m.60); De Bruyne, Batshuayi (De Ketelaere, m.75) and Eden Hazard (Mertens, m.60).
2- Morocco: Munir; Achraf (Sabiri, M.66), Saïss, Aguerd, Mazraoui; Amrabat, Ounahi (El Yamiq, m.78), Amallah (Attiat-Allal, M.66); Boufal (Aboukhlal, m. 72), En-Nesyri (Hamdallah, m.72) and Ziyech.
Goals: 0-1, m.73: Abdelhamid Sabiri. 0-2, m.92: Zakaria Aboukhlal.
Referee: César Arturo Ramos (Mexico). He admonished Onana (m.29) by Belgium. Sabiri (m.94) saw the yellow card in Morocco.
Incidents: Match of the second day of group F of the group stage of the World Cup in Qatar played at the Al Thumama stadium before 43,738 spectators, according to official data. EFE
