Morocco Overcomes Injury Blow! Achraf Hakimi & Co. Advance to Quarter-finals Against Canada Despite Missing Future Bayern Star

Morocco, the dark horse, has knocked out co-host Canada. However, star striker Ismael Saibari sustained an injury.

Ismael Saibari limped onto the field after the final whistle, eager to celebrate his Moroccan teammates' advancement to the quarter-finals, despite his early exit from the match. The future Bayern star watched the 3-0 (0-0) victory against co-host Canada from the bench starting from the 22nd minute due to an early thigh injury.

Even without their goal scorer, the Africa Cup of Nations winner and dark horse ended the Canadians' heroic World Cup journey. In a heated and largely tactically tough Round of 16 match in Houston, Morocco struggled for a long time but ultimately secured a clear victory thanks to goals from Azzedine Ounahi (50'/82') and Soufiane Rahimi (90'+8).

"We were the better team," said Canada's national coach Jesse Marsch after the game. "We just lacked the ability to make the necessary plays at crucial moments. What an incredible performance. I couldn't be prouder."

For the first time in World Cup history, an African team has reached the quarter-finals in two consecutive tournaments. In 2022 in Qatar, Morocco reached the semi-finals, where they were defeated by France (0-2). On Thursday (10:00 PM CEST), a reunion could occur in Boston if the French overcome Paraguay, the team that upset Germany.

Under the Eyes of the Hockey GOAT: Canada Starts Furiously

Before the sporting action commenced in the air-conditioned Houston Stadium, Stars and Stripes dominated. On the USA's 250th Independence Day, 'Space City' received greetings from space from three American astronauts on the International Space Station, and the American anthem was grandly staged with a huge banner and Navy singer Maia Rodriguez.

The Canadian 'heroes' aimed to continue writing their fairytale World Cup story precisely on their big neighbor's national holiday. Marsch clearly conceded the favorite role to the North Africans, calling 'Giant' Morocco "without any weaknesses," said the 52-year-old, who initially benched the returning Alphonso Davies.

Under the watchful eyes of ice hockey legend and superfan Wayne Gretzky in the stands, the underdog, who had qualified for the World Cup Round of 16 for the first time thanks to a last-minute win against South Africa (1-0), started quite furiously. Tanitoluwa Oluwaseyi's first major opportunity was thwarted by a brilliant Bono (10th minute).

After Saibari's Exit: Clever Set-Piece Breaks the Deadlock

Saibari repeatedly clutched his back-right thigh after a counter-attack until he finally sank to the ground, covering his face with his hands. The new Munich signing, who had signed a contract with Bayern until 2031 on Wednesday, had to be substituted injured after just 22 minutes. On the bench, the 50-million-euro player repeatedly buried his face in his jersey in frustration.

The clear favorite, who had expended a lot of energy in their Round of 16 penalty shootout win against the Netherlands (3-2), played sluggishly and had their first (harmless) shot on goal in the 30th minute. Without their best goal scorer, creativity and power in their forward play were lacking. Instead, the match became heated, with referee Michael Oliver (England) issuing six yellow cards in the first half, five of them from the 40th minute onwards.

It took a set-piece for redemption. Captain Achraf Hakimi laid the ball back to Ounahi, who was completely free at the edge of the penalty area to shoot. Morocco then managed their lead, and Canada tried many things, but Ounahi sealed the victory with a powerful shot from a counter-attack.