WORLD CUP PREVIEW Sat: Morocco v Portugal

Morocco face Portugal in a fascinating match-up at the Al Thumana Stadium.

The Moroccans – 200/1 for outright glory before the tournament and 10/1 to reach the quarter-finals with starsports.bet – have a chance to create history and be the first African side to reach the semis after their victory against Spain on penalties.

To reach that milestone they will need to get past Portugal, who have been the tournament’s big movers after an incredible 6-1 demolition of Switzerland on Monday. The Portuguese were 14/1 before the last 16 and are now as short as 6/1 with starsports.bet for tournament glory.

The trials and travails of Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated coverage of Portugal during this World Cup – but his thunder was very much stolen by Goncalo Ramos, the 21-year-old hotshot who scored a hat-trick in their incredible 6-1 demolition of Switzerland on Monday.

The key takeaway from that performance – bar the huge statement they made – was how much Portugal seemed to benefit without Ronaldo, as Ramos, Joao Felix and Bruno Fernandes linked to devastating effect whilst fullbacks Raphaël Guerreiro and Diogo Dalot also impressed going forward.

If Fernando Santos sticks with the same line-up – and he should – then it will take a fine defensive effort to stop Portugal.

Morocco v Portugal
FIFA World Cup 2022 Quarter-Final
15:00 ITV One HD / ITV Player / STV

LAST FIVE STATS

HEAD-TO-HEAD
JUN 2018 WORLD CUP Portugal 1-0 Morocco
JUN 1986 WORLD CUP Portugal 1-3 Morocco

MOROCCO
NOV 2022 INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY Morocco 3-0 Georgia
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Morocco 0-0 Croatia
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Belgium 0-2 Morocco
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Canada 1-2 Morocco
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Morocco 0-0 Spain (won 3-0 on penalties)

PORTUGAL
NOV 2022 INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY Portugal 4-0 Nigeria
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Portugal 3-2 Ghana
NOV 2022 WORLD CUP Portugal 2-0 Uruguay
DEC 2022 WORLD CUP South Korea 2-1 Portugal
DEC 2022 WORLD CUP Portugal 6-1 Switzerland

Morocco have produced several fine defensive efforts at the World Cup. Their low block – sometimes in the shape of a 4-1-4-1 or 4-5-1 – worked perfectly against a Spain side that couldn’t find the space between the lines needed to get the best out of Marco Asensio upfront, whilst Dani Almo was extremely well shut down by Achraf Hakimi who put himself in the history books with his penalty.

That means Morocco have now recorded shutouts against Croatia, Belgium and Spain at this World Cup and they will present Portugal with their sternest test so far.

Portugal will be a more potent threat going forward – Spain had just one shot on target from 1,019 passes in their last 16 tie – and bring a wider range of attacking options to the table, but it would be unwise to expect a repeat of their demolition job on Monday, regardless of how impressive it was.

Portugal’s superior attacking options and strength in depth mean they’re market favourites but a price of 4/6 for victory in 90 minutes and 1/3 to qualify looks short given Morocco’s excellent defensive setup, whilst the quality of fullbacks Achraf Hakimi, and Noussair Mazraoui should give Portugal problems on the counter.

This could be a tighter game than many expect, and it would be no surprise if it took time for Portugal to find their way through, and Morocco’s best chances could come later in the game too as chances open up on the counter. The 0-0 draw at half time looks a fair price at 13/8 in what’s sure to be a fiery encounter.

WILLIAM KEDJANYI

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RECOMMENDED BETS

BACK 0-0 Half Time Correct Score 2 pts at 13/8 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)

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PROFIT/LOSS (WORLD CUP 2022): LOSS 44.83 points (after matches on Tues 6 Dec, includes TWO GOOD bonus on CAMEROON v SERBIA 28 Nov)
(Will include returns from both the OUTRIGHT and SPECIALS previews too)

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