Morocco survived a huge scare from Haiti before winning 4-2 on Wednesday, coming from behind twice to book their place. FIFA World Cup white man 32.Substitutes Soufiane Rahimi and Gessime Yassine played key parts in the final stages of the game, scoring key goals as Morocco ended Haiti’s hopes of picking up their first point of the tournament.
Haiti makes history with an early victory
Playing in their second World Cup and first since 1974, Haiti stunned the African champions in the 10th minute. Lenny Joseph met a near post and cleverly slotted the ball past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.The goal was historic, making Joseph Haiti the first to score in a World Cup since Emmanuel Sanon found the net more than fifty years ago.
Hakimi counters, but Haiti strikes again
Morocco won after falling behind and eventually got a goal back six minutes from time. Achraf Hakimi did well when Haitian goalkeeper Johny Placide failed to deal with a deflected ball from Bilal El Khannouss.Scoring the height didn’t take long. Four minutes later, Wilson Isidor restored Haiti’s lead with a stunning long-range effort that went into the top corner, leaving Bounou with no chance.
Saibari levels before the break
The first half had another twist left. In stoppage time, Ismael Saibari finished off Hakimi’s cross to make it 2-2 at half time.It was Saibari’s third goal of the tournament and ensured that Morocco would remain in good form despite a difficult opening 45 minutes.
Second-half substitutes sealed the win
Morocco increased the pressure after the interval and eventually took control in the final. Substitute Rahimi put his side ahead in the 78th minute when his shot went into the net.As Haiti pushed forward in search of another equaliser, Yassine ended the contest with a goal in the 89th minute to complete the comeback and secure Morocco’s place in the knockout stages.
Morocco passes, Haiti is on its knees
The win saw Morocco finish second in Group C behind Brazil, who beat Scotland 3-0 in the group’s other game. Morocco will now face the Group F finalist – either the Netherlands, Japan or Sweden – in Guadalajara.Despite the defeat, Haiti was praised for pushing one of the tournament’s top contenders and nearly pulled off one of the tournament’s biggest upsets.After the match, midfielder Bilal El Khannouss admitted that Morocco were not good at the start.“Sometimes we lacked humility and paid the price. We didn’t give ourselves completely in the duels, we gave them confidence and allowed them to grow in the game and score twice. In the middle, the coach told us that we need to be more mature, win second balls and bring more energy to our attacking game.”