Morocco’s dream-run in the FIFA World Cup 2022 is over. The North African country punched above its weight and was very close to attaining ultimate success as a football team. They beat the likes of Belgium, Spain and Portugal on their way to the semi-finals in Qatar and etched history. However, Croatia led by their talismanic midfielder Luka Modric edged past the spirited Morocco side to win the 3rd place match in Qatar.
Croatian defender Josko Gvardiol netted a goal in the 7th minute to give Croatia the lead. However, Morocco was quick to respond and defender Achraf Dari netted a header soon after the 1st goal. Notably, this was the defender’s first international game.
Morocco failed to crawl back into the game in the 2nd half
The interesting thing about this game was that all the 3 goals came in the 1st half. Even though there was a neck-to-neck battle between the two teams in the second half, Morocco failed to stage a comeback.
Mislav Orsic netted the 2nd goal for Croatia in the 42nd minute. They got the lead just minutes before the first half had to end and this was a big shot in the arm for the 2018 finalists.
Previously in 1998 when Croatia played their 1st ever FIFA World Cup, they had finished 3rd. Most recently in the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia, Luka Modric’s team finished 2nd after losing to France in the finals.
Their World Cup dream was shattered when they lost to Argentina 0-3. Lionel Messi was at his supreme best in the game and scored 1 goal and assisted in another.
Morocco on the other hand lost to France in the semi-finals and had to bow out of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar. The score-line read 2-0 in favour of France. Morocco however should be mighty pleased with their performance as they became the 1st African team to qualify for the semi-finals of this elite tournament.
Also read: FIFA World Cup 2022: Full List Of Golden Boot Winners Across All World Cup Editions