Youssef En-Nesyri made it 1-0 in the match Morocco vs. Portugal
By Orlando González Cruz
Havana, December 10 (RHC)-- With an immense Yassine Bounou (Bono) in goal, Morocco defeated Portugal (1-0) and became today the first African team to reach a FIFA World Cup semifinal.
The Qatar 2022 edition continues to leave surprises for the history books and saw the North Africans conquer the Iberian peninsula and defeat the mighty Spain and Portugal.
Those in attendance at the Al Thumama stadium enjoyed the performance of the Moroccans, who continue to extend their legend by crossing the impossible barrier for their geographical area of the quarterfinals. Previously, Cameroon in 1990, Senegal 2002 and Ghana 2010 had reached this stage.
The fourth time was the charm for the so-called "Black Continent". Their representatives took the lead from the very first half, with a goal scored by Youssef En-Nesyri ('42). The Sevilla player thus became the all-time leading scorer for his national team.
Morocco showed that what happened in the tournament is not a coincidence and that they are a well-worked team, well-organized in defense, with the added bonus of having a fabulous goalkeeper and with a high level of firepower up front, which will not be an easy prey for any rival.
In today's duel, both teams had chances to keep scoring, but the scoreboard would remain unchanged at 1-0. Thus, the Lusitanians bid farewell to the World Cup and their idol Cristiano Ronaldo, who started again from the bench, lived what should have been his last minutes in World Cup competitions.
Walid Regragui's disciples are still undefeated in the tournament and not only remain unbeatable, but their defense is immaculate against teams of greater soccer entity, such as: Croatia, Belgium, Spain and Portugal. Let's remember that the Canadians are the only ones to have breached the goal guarded by Bono and, to top it off, it was an own goal.
Now the Moroccans are waiting for the winner of the quarter-final match between France and England, to be played in the second round of matches this Saturday, to take their continent to the semifinals for the first time.
