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“We wanted three points and we got them,” Morocco coach Mohamed
Ouahbi said.
Morocco's ball movement caught Scotland on its heels at the very
start.
Saibari slipped behind two Scotland defenders and Brahim Diaz
dropped the ball over the top to him. The 25-year-old forward
gathered and blasted it into the top left corner, well outside
the reach of goalkeeper Angus Gunn.
Morocco, which reached the semifinals at the last World Cup in
Qatar, drew 1-1 with Brazil in its Group C opener with Saibari
scoring the lone goal. Scotland, which hasn’t gotten out of the
group stage in its eight previous World Cup appearances, beat
Haiti 1-0 in its first match.
Scotland was outshot 12-6 on Friday, struggling to get clear
looks against Morocco’s defense.
The negative result didn't affect Scotland coach Steve Clarke's
confidence in his team.
“We gave them a game," Clarke said. "We’re sure we can compete
at this level.”
Morocco nearly scored another in the 52nd minute when a header
by Bilal El Khannouss off Achraf Hakimi’s corner kick was
battled down by Gunn.
Scotland had a chance in first-half stoppage time when Andy
Robertson sent a cross at John McGinn, who couldn’t get a foot
on it near the back post.
As Scotland pressed for an equalizing goal in the closing
minutes, Morocco had a pair of good chances to add to their
lead, but both missed the target.
“I thought the performance didn’t match the result, if I’m
honest,” Scotland midfielder Lewis Ferguson said. “We took the
game to them. So there are positives from both games that
certainly we can take into this last game.”
Scotland will face Brazil in its final Group C match on
Wednesday in Miami Gardens, Florida. Morocco will take on Haiti
at the same time in Atlanta.
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