FIFA World Cup 2022 Quarterfinals - Morocco vs Portugal | Dec 10, 2022, 11 PM

[Mary C]

 

 

In the previous round, the Portuguese defeated Switzerland with a score of 6-1. They won over Ghana with 3-2 and Uruguay with 2-0 to finish first in the group stage, but they fell to South Korea 2-1 after many of their starters were rested. 

Morocco, on the other hand, has undoubtedly been this World Cup’s biggest surprise. In a penalty shootout, the African nation defeated the overwhelming favorite Spain to go to the quarterfinals for the first time ever. In addition, the team was undefeated in group play, defeating Belgium 2-0, Canada 2-1, and Croatia 0-0 while tying with them. Despite Portugal’s superior World Cup track record, it is tough to discount Morocco’s Cinderella tale in 2022. This makes the game potentially timeless. Following that, there are some audacious predictions for Saturday’s quarterfinal World Cup 2022 encounter between Portugal and Morocco. 

Morocco has performed well in this competition, and its defense may be the main factor. The team has only given up one goal in four games, an own goal against Canada. Things against Spain were the same. Morocco didn’t concede a sing goal, not even in the penalty shootout. Yassine Bounou, the goalie, stopped attempts from Sergio Busquets and Carlos Soler. Bounou, a player for the Spanish club Sevilla, ended up earning Man of the Match honors. 

Morocco will need their goalie to be in top form once more in the quarterfinal matchup against another European powerhouse. With the expertise of soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and a host of young players like Joo Felix and Rafael Leo, Portugal boasts a strong offense. Bounou should struggle on Saturday as a result of that. If he performs even remotely close to what he has been doing at this World Cup, Morocco should be in the running for yet another historic upset. The audacious forecast is that Bounou will continue to make a crucial save and advance his chances of winning the Golden Glove Award. 

Since Euro 2008, this was the first major competition in which he did not get off to a start for his country. Only one goal has been scored by Ronaldo at this World cup, a penalty kick in the team’s opening match against Ghana. Fortunately for Portugal, Goncalo Ramos, who replaced Ronaldo, scored the first hat-trick and provided an assist. Although Ramos was essential to the victory, many people disregarded with Santos’ choice to bench one of the best players of all-time. 

Ronaldo holds the record for most international goals ever scored with 118. He is the only player to have scored in five different men’s World Cups. His expertise and skills are unrivaled even if he is performing at the same level as he did when he was the FIFA Best Men’s Player for several years. But Portugal showed that it is capable of competing without relying primarily on Ronaldo. Because of this, the audacious guess is that Santos will start Ramos once more while reserving Ronaldo. However, because this competition should be more difficult, compared to the round of 16, Ronaldo will leave the bench earlier. 

One of the toughest games in this competition should be this one. On one side, a country is attempting to grant a soccer legend the long-awaited World Cup victory. On the other hand, a team will strive to make history by becoming the first nation from Africa to place in the top four. Morocco has momentum on its side despite Portugal having a greater historical perspective. Elite soccer is becoming more popular outside of Europe and South America as seen by winning a group that included two Europeans and the win against the 2010 World Cup Champion Spain.