The 2022 FIFA World Cup continues Saturday on FOX with Morocco taking on Portugal at Qatar’s Al-Thumama Stadium in the tournament’s penultimate quarterfinal match.
Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was relegated to the bench from the start for the team’s second straight game, but he took the field in the second half after Portugal fell behind, 1-0.
The all-time record between these two teams in the World Cup is 1-1, having met in 1986 and 2018.
There is one more semifinal spot up for grabs Saturday, as England takes on France next (2 p.m. ET, FOX and the FOX Sports app). The winners will advance to play each other in the semifinals on Wednesday.
Here are the top plays!
6′: What could have been
Youssef En-Nesyri was this close to putting Morocco on the board early, but his header was a bit too high.
He tried another header in the 26th minute, but that one missed just to the right, and things remained scoreless.
31′: Blocked!
Portugal’s João Félix made a big move near the half-hour mark, taking a shot from outside the box, but it was blocked.
Moments later, Portugal defender Raphaël Guerreiro tried a through ball, but Gonçalo Ramos was caught offside.
42: Goal!
Finally, En-Nesyri was able to connect with the net, sinking a header to give Morocco a 1-0 lead ahead of halftime.
Morocco’s Youssef En-Nesyri scores goal vs. Portugal in 42′
It was the Morocco men’s national team’s first World Cup goal in the knockout stage.
45′: Off the bar!
Bruno Fernandes was inches away from evening things up ahead of the break, but his attempt was no good.
52′: Ronaldo checks in
Ronaldo entered the game in the 52nd minute, replacing Rúben Neves.
Stay tuned for updates!
Startling lineup alert
Portuguese star Ronaldo was relegated to the bench for Portugal’s second straight game after being replaced in the starting XI for Tuesday’s match against Switzerland by 21-year-old Ramos, who scored a hat trick in Portugal’s resounding 6-1 victory, before eventually entering for Ramos in the 73rd minute.
That was the first time the 37-year-old striker didn’t start a World Cup match since 2006. Reports surfaced soon after that Ronaldo told manager Fernando Santos that he would quit after finding out that he would not start for the national team — a report the Portuguese Football Federation since denied in a statement.
On Friday, his manager spoke about all the discussion around Ronaldo’s status, saying, “I think it’s high time to leave Cristiano Ronaldo alone. In every news conference, 90% of the questions are about Cristiano Ronaldo.”
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