Hello and welcome to Telegraph Sport’s live coverage of Morocco vs Spain in the last 16 of this year’s World Cup. This afternoon’s game kicks off at 3pm at the Education City Stadium, with the winner facing either Portugal or Switzerland (who meet at 7pm) in the quarter-finals.
At the start of the tournament, the chances of these two teams facing each other seemed slim. Morocco’s chances of qualifying were considered slim as they were drawn in a group alongside big beasts like Croatia and Belgium, while Spain went on a dizzying run, destined to win Group E ahead of Germany, Japan and Costa Rica.
But an energetic Moroccan side, led by Achraf Hakimi and Hakim Ziyech, beat older European opponents to top their group and reach the knockout stages for the first time since 1986. , and finished second in a group that came down to the wire.
Moroccan head coach Walid Regragui acknowledged the gap in World Cup experience between the two teams, but ahead of the game he suggested Morocco may be in for another surprise. [their] sleeve”.
“It’s important for us to put our emotions aside and go all out. The great nations are here and it’s important for us to let them run for their money,” he said.
“We tell this to our kids that you have to have dreams. Africa has never won a World Cup. Why don’t you give them this dream?”
With Senegal eliminated after England’s 3-0 win against the Lions of Teranga on Sunday night, Morocco are the only African team left in the competition, and Regragui stressed that previously “only the Moroccans supported us”.
He added: “Now it’s the Africans and the Arabs. We will come in with a winning mentality. We will wave. We want to raise our Moroccan flag high.”