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Key events
It’s the big pennant showdown … and it’s as good as a walkover for Morocco. Achraf Hakimi will hand over this uniquely shaped artefact that almost literally drips with beauty. The Arabic script translates as Royal Moroccan Football Federation, so there’s no detail anywhere of today’s fixture and opponent; unfortunately that’s one point docked. However two bonus points are awarded for the sheer elegance of Arabic script. Total score: 11 out of 10.
This however doesn’t pass muster. Untidy tassels, and is there any need to be shouting CANADA? We know it’s Canada, the logo’s told us that already. Total score: four out of 10 (FOUR OUT OF TEN).
Morocco make one change to their starting XI from the game against the Netherlands. Redouane Halhal takes the place of Chadi Riad at centre-back. Riad picked up a knee injury in that last-32 match, but is on the bench nonetheless.
Canada captain and star man Alphonso Davies, battling back from long-term injury, starts on the bench again, having come on to good effect against South Africa. Jesse Marsch makes three changes following that last-32 victory. Luc de Fougerolles and Niko Sigur come into a five-man defence, while Norwich City’s Ali Ahmed augments the attack. Derek Cornelius, Liam Millar and Nathan Saliba step down.
The teams
Canada: Crepeau, Johnston, De Fougerolles, Bombito, Laryea, Buchanan, Sigur, Stephen Eustaquio, Ahmed, Jonathan David, Oluwaseyi.
Subs: St. Clair, Goodman, Jones, Waterman, Choiniere, Larin, Millar, Cornelius, Shaffelburg, Davies, Osorio, Promise David, Saliba, Nelson.
Morocco: Bounou, Hakimi, Diop, Halhal, Mazraoui, Bouaddi, El Aynaoui, Diaz, Ounahi, El Khannous, Saibari.
Subs: Mohamedi, Tagnaouti, Amrabat, Saadane, Talbi, Rahimi, El Ouahdi, El Mourabet, Yassine, Sbai, Riad, Belammari, El Kaabi, Amaimouni-Echghouyab, Saleh-Eddine.
Referee: Michael Oliver (England).
Canada have played Morocco on four previous occasions. They’ve yet to win. Three of those matches were friendlies: Morocco won 3-2 in 1984 and 4-0 in 2016, while the countries drew 1-1 in 1984. The only competitive fixture came in the last World Cup, when Hakim Ziyech and Youssef En-Nesyri scored the goals that won Morocco their group and set them off on their journey to the semis.
Morocco were the best performers in Group C. But they didn’t win it, because they failed to put Brazil away while in the ascendancy during a 1-1 draw. It took they 70 seconds to see off Scotland. And they toyed with ignominy against Haiti but eventually overpowered the underdogs 4-2.
They were on the brink of going out in the Round of 16 against the Netherlands. Issa Diop rescued them with a stoppage-time header, and the Atlas Lions went on to win a topsy-turvy penalty contest.
Canada made it out of Group B easily enough. A 1-1 draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina. A six-goal rout of Qatar that was soured by a bad injury to Ismaël Koné. A 2-1 defeat to Switzerland that lost them home advantage.
Then in the round of 16 they ground out victory over South Africa. Stephen Eustáquio was their last-gasp hero.
Here are the pre-tournament team guides, the view from the outset. Reread! Reacquaint! Reassess!
Preamble
Whatever happens to Canada now – within comedic/catastrophic reason – this World Cup will go down as an unqualified success. So far, they’ve won their first match at a finals; they’ve qualified from a group for the first time; and they’ve won a knockout game at their very first attempt. Nobody’s seriously expecting Jesse Marsch’s team to win the whole darn thing, so the co-hosts will be approaching everything from here on in as a free hit. Any more success will/should be considered an extremely pleasant bonus.
Morocco will be setting their sights a little higher. Four years ago, the Atlas Lions broke through all sorts of barriers: not only was their fourth-place finish their best at a World Cup by some distance, in doing so they became both the first African and Arab nation to reach the semi-final stage. Since then, they’ve won (well, been awarded) the Africa Cup of Nations; in four years time, they’ll co-host the World Cup. It’s a banner period for them, and currently ranked sixth in the world – ahead of historical powerhouses Portugal, the Netherlands, Germany and Italy, and only behind five previous World Cup champions – they’ll see no reason why they can’t go super-deep again.
Of course, one of the hot favourites in France would (probably) be next … and Canada are perfectly capable of pulling of a shock as well. Super-deep is far from nailed-on for Morocco, and this game is by no means a gimme, so with its swirly mix of expectation, relaxation, likelihood and sort-of-home-crowd advantage, today’s round-of-16 tie is almost perfectly set up for FUN. Let’s hope it delivers; there’s no reason on earth why it shouldn’t. Kick off in Houston, Texas is at midday local time, 1pm EDT, 6pm BST and 3am AEST. It’s on!
