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Morocco vs Spain – World Cup: Team news, possible lineups & prediction.
Morocco will play Spain in the round of 16 of the World Cup as compensation for winning a group that also included Belgium and Croatia.
In a World Cup round of 16 games between two countries from different continents separated by less than ten miles, Morocco takes on Spain on Tuesday in the afternoon in the Education City Stadium.
After suffering a shocking loss to Japan in their final group match, Spain placed second in Group E. La Furia Roja has one of the strongest teams in the competition, and they’ll do everything in their power to advance.
Morocco, on the other hand, has so far at the World Cup outperformed expectations and won their group. Last week, the African team outlasted Canada 2-1, and they’ll try for a repeat performance this time around.
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Team News:
Yassine Bounou, the starting goalkeeper for Morocco, was able to play the full 90 minutes against Canada after feeling unwell just before the win over Belgium and having to leave at the last minute. He can now hope to be included in an untampered XI.
Despite having some ankle issues, Achraf Hakimi—who delivered a lovely assist for En-goal—is Nesyri’s anticipated to be in good physical condition. However, the Paris Saint-Germain right-back was one of several starters who did not participate in full training on Saturday.
A well-deserved break was also provided to players like Sofiane Boufal, Sofiane Amrabat, and Ziyech, but there is no reason to believe that they won’t be available for Tuesday’s match.
Cesar Azpilicueta, David Raya, and Dani Olmo were all absent from Spain’s training session on Friday, while it was thought that the former had just needed to relax following a taxing group period.
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However, Simon was always expected to be given the gloves despite his mistake the last time out. Azpilicueta, who was replaced at halftime against Japan, is struggling with problems in his calf, and the reasons for Raya’s absence are yet unknown.
Against Japan, Enrique did not hesitate to start the young team of Nico Williams and Alejandro Balde, although Ferran Torres and Jordi Alba can anticipate returning to the starting lineup for the knockout rounds.
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Possible Lineup:
Morocco’s possible starting lineup:
Bono; Hakimi, Saiss, Aguerd, Mazraoui; Ounahi, Amrabat, Sahiri; Ziyech, En-Nesyri, Boufal
Spain’s possible starting lineup:
Simon; Carvajal, Rodri, Laporte, Alba; Pedri, Busquets, Gavi; Torres, Morata, Olmo.
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Score prediction:
Since Walid Regragui took over in August, no opponent has scored against Morocco. Morocco conceded just once in World Cup qualifying under his predecessor, Vahid Halilhodzic.
When under pressure, Spain appeared to be most vulnerable in this tournament. Germany gained a point from this strategy, but Japan may have provided Morocco with the model for a targeted press by resting in a compact shape before choosing their opportunities to attack. Morocco can duplicate this strategy because they are the only team in Qatar to have scored as many as two goals from high turnover rates.
Prediction: Morocco 1-1 Spain