Morocco defeated Spain 3-0 in a penalty shootout to advance to the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup . 2010 World Cup winners Spain lost in the shootout after scoring no Spanish player .
Ar Rayyan Qatar, December 6: Morocco defeated 2010 World Cup winners Spain 3-0 in a penalty shootout to advance to the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup at the Education City Stadium on Tuesday in a crucial round of 16 clash.Spain lost in the shootout after scoring no Spanish player.This was Spain's fourth World Cup loss in a penalty shootout, the most by a team on football's biggest stage.Despite an additional 30 minutes of play, Spain and Morocco were unable to break the deadlock as both teams struggled to capitalize on their chances to score.
Morocco opened the scoring on their first kick with Sabiri, but Spain's Sarabia came close to taking the lead.Morocco scored again for a 2-0 lead in the Asian nation.Spain faltered once more when Soler failed to pass the ball past the keeper.The Moroccans won 2-0, and it looked like they would seal the match with the next kick, but Simon kept Spain in the tie as Badr Benoun missed to score. Both teams went on to raise the bar and put on the heat in the second half to take the lead that had eluded them in the first half.With each passing minute, the game got more intense.Dani Olmo gave Spain his first shot when he was fired on target from a free kick, but Bono noticed that the ball did not bounce out of the net.Spain upped the ante in the hopes of scoring, but the resolute Moroccan defense held on, failing to give the Spanish team the lead. On Tuesday, an explosive first half in a crucial round of 16 clash between Spain and Morocco ended goalless at the Education City Stadium.In the group stages of the 2018 World Cup, the last time these teams met was in the group stages, where it ended in a 2-2 draw, and a similar intense battle ensued in the first half of the pre-quarterfinal here, with both teams going all out for a place in the last-eight.Spain began the second half dominating as they saw more possession in the first minutes.Morocco was awarded a free kick in the 19th minute when Sergio Busquets committed a foul. In the 26th minute, Marco Asensio made a fantastic run for the Moroccan box, blazing past the defenders, but could not convert his attempt at the goal because it was too far away and only found the side-netting.Morocco made a long-range kick in the 33rd minute while Noussair Mazraoui attempted to score but was held at bay by the Spanish goalkeeper.Spain looked to attack at any opportunity, but the Moroccan defence held their cool and defended superbly to keep the 2010 champions at bay.In the dying minutes of the half, Morocco players were able to see themselves within close range of the Spanish goal a few times, but they were unable to convert their chances.