Morocco and Croatia played to a dry 0-0 draw at Al Bayt Stadium, aside from the boisterous enthusiasm of Moroccan fans of the Atlas Lions, as the Moroccan team is known, the match was fairly uneventful.
While numerous Moroccan fans were expecting a resentful against the finalists of the 2018 World Cup, a draw sets their collaboration for a potential pathway to progress past the gathering phase of the World Cup — and its allies know it.
“We were up against a much more powerful opponent”, Moroccan fan Belal Hamdou, who lives in Doha, told Al Jazeera about Saudi Arabia’s dramatic 2-1 victory over Argentina on Tuesday.
“I thought maybe we could repeat what Saudi did,” he said .”A draw will do for now. … The team could have attacked more, but I don’t want people to put pressure. Let’s support them till the end.”
The Moroccans came into the game as underdogs, but Croatia, with their star player Luka Modric, could not break through their defense and score.
By the end, it was abundantly clear that Moroccan fans had increased their confidence in their team to the point where they believed a surprise victory was possible.
Except for the jeers when Modric was named player of the match, the crowd was largely placid after the final whistle.
Mohammed El Yamiq, 42, of Mohammedia, a city in western Morocco, stated, “I wanted a win badly, The game was very uninteresting, but for the time being, this will do.When we play against other members of the group, it gives us a boost.
The Qatari stadium in Al Khor was alive with life and color.The Moroccan flag’s hues of red and green dominated the scene.
There were undoubtedly significantly fewer Croatian fans than Moroccan fans.
Frank Kanajet, who is from Split in the southwest, thought his Croatian team had more chances.The 60-year-old stated, “There was an obligation for us to win as finalists of the 2018 World Cup.”
However, his son Andre was less surprised, describing the outcome as “expected.”
The Abu Dhabi-based 38-year-old stated, “Morocco is a strong team.”It was roughly matched evenly.
Josep, another Croatian fan, said that a win would have made his life “easier” because he thinks Belgium and Canada, the other two teams in Group C, will be harder opponents than Morocco.
Croatia plays Canada on Sunday, followed by Morocco’s matchup with Belgium on the same day.
How Morocco held Croatia to a goalless draw
Crostia’s world Cup campaign got off to a sluggish start with a 0-0 draw against a determined Morocco.
Croatia and Morocco played to a goalless draw to begin their World Cup campaign.
At Al Bayt Stadium on Wednesday, chances were few and far between as a level Group F contest produced little action.
At the tournament that has so far been held in Qatar, this was the third goalless draw in nine games.
On Sunday, Croatia will play Canada before Morocco plays Belgium.
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