The final round of matches in Group F have concluded, with Morocco completing a breathtaking performance, as they beat Canada 2-1 at the Al Thumama Stadium.
Morocco took the lead after just four minutes, through Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech, after a dreadful error from goalkeeper Milan Borjan.
The lead was doubled just under twenty minutes later, when Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi picked out Sevilla forward Youssef En-Nesyri, who smashed an effort past the keeper.
Canada did pull a goal back just before the break, when Nayef Aguerd put through his own net.
However, it was not enough to inspire a comeback and the game finished with no other goals.
Following the conclusion of the game, what four things did we manage to learn?
-
All the possession but nothing to show for it
Canada may have lost the game, and indeed their place at the tournament, however they can leave having showed a lot of promise and improvement, since they last reached the competition.
Throughout the game against Morocco, they managed 59% possession but could not seem to make it count when it mattered most of all.
This was the second consecutive match that the nation had more possession but lost.
The disappointment for The Maples Leafs will be that they failed to create enough and therefore score enough when it mattered.
In the three games they played, Canada only managed two goals and one of those was an own-goal.
However, the possession is a positive which they can take forward into their future international competitions.
-
Buchanan continued to impress
Aside from Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies, there was another Canadian that stood out in the form of winger Tajon Buchanan, who plays his club football for Belgium side Club Brugge.
The 23-year-old had another strong performance, and had a hand in creating a couple of opportunities despite the defeat.
Throughout the tournament, he has been extremely lively, causing opposition defenders some serious problems.
The World Cup has a history of seeing players from smaller nations excel, such as the 2010 tournament when James Rodriguez and Keylor Navas first burst onto the scene.
Buchanan has definitely done enough to warrant interest in him.
When the next competition comes around, he would be 27-years-old and be heading towards the peak of his career, which can only be a good thing for Canada.
-
Ziyech gets his goal
Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech has had a very difficult couple of seasons, with his career hitting a firm brick wall at Stamford Bridge.
This has not been helped by his limited amount of game time under both Thomas Tuchel and new manager Graham Potter.
The 29-year-old grabbed the opening goal, after he lifted the ball into an empty net from over 30 yards out, after an error from the Canadian goalkeeper.
It is a personal improvement for Ziyech, after he failed to contribute to a goal in Morocco’s last World Cup.
This time around, he has a goal and an assist as his side head into the knockout stages of the competition.
If Ziyech can continue his form, and build on his goal, Chelsea will have no choice but to consider restoring him to their starting lineups moving forward.
-
Morocco qualify for the first time in 36 years
With victory over Canada, it confirmed The Atlas Lions as winners of Group F, something which not many people predicted before the tournament began.
After drawing their opening match against Croatia, Morocco picked up a shock win against a disappointing Belgium side before beating Canada to seal top-spot.
Meanwhile, the group favourites Belgium crashed out at the first hurdle, after finishing third on just four points.
Morocco have been the surprise package so far but have thoroughly deserved to win the group overall.
They have not tried to over-complicate matters in matches, instead they turned up, kept their heads down and played their usual free-flowing football and it has worked a treat.
Finishing top of the group means Morocco have set up a match against Spain in the knockout stages after they finished second in Group E, with Japan top and Germany crashing out again.