Morocco’s unlikely strike stuns a sluggish Belgium.
Abdelhamid Sabiri’s inspired free kick from a narrow angle, when most other players would have opted for a cross instead of a shot, gave Morocco the suprise lead, and Zakaria Aboukhlal’s chip from a cutback pass sealed the 2-0 victory over Belgium in stoppage time.
The vicious English tabloids will have a field day with Belgium’s performance, and with their thesaurus. Insipid. Turgid. Uninspired. Ponderous. Sluggish. It should be impossible for a side featuring Kevin de Bruyne, Eden Hazard and Axel Witsel — even the well-aged version of these players — to look so toothless in attack, even as they generated plenty of chances that were wasted.
But Morocco understood the game plan and executed it well. They defended deeply, and looked for Hakim Ziyech and Achraf Hakimi on the break. They took advantage of their set piece opportunities, momentarily taking the lead in first half stoppage time from a Ziyech free kick before a Moroccan player was ruled offside.
Belgium played as if the match was a quaint Sunday league game, while the Atlas Lions of Morocco showed an energy and directness that Belgium could not cope with.
The victory was Morocco’s first at the World Cup at the World Cup since 1998, and they will need just a draw in their final game to advance to the knockout phase of the tournament.
