Ounahi fires Morocco into World Cup quarterfinals with 3-0 win over Canada

Azzedine Ounahi scored twice as Morocco scored three second-half goals to end cohosts run and reach last eight.Azzedine Ounahi scored twice to help fire Morocco to a 3-0 win over Canada in the World Cup Round of 16 as The Atlas Lions became the first African nation to reach the quarterfinals more than once.It is Morocco’s second consecutive appearance in the last eight after becoming the first African team to reach the semifinals in 2022.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Les Bleus lead the way: Key takeaways from World Cup Round of 32list 2 of 4‘We lit up the World Cup’: Cape Verde fans overjoyed despite Argentina losslist 3 of 4England play Mexico at Azteca: How altitude might affect the World Cup gamelist 4 of 4World Cup: Which are the best matches to watch in the last 16?end of listCanada dominated the opening stages but neither team was able to break through on Saturday until the Moroccans scored in the 50th minute. Ounahi received a free kick from Achraf Hakimi and fired a right-footed shot through traffic from outside the box into the bottom right corner.Morocco’s Azzedine Ounahi celebrates scoring their first goal [Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters] (Reuters)Ounahi made it 2-0 with a right-footed shot from the middle of the box after a pass from Brahim Díaz aftr a quick counterattack in the 82nd minute.Soufiane Rahimi – who came on for injured forward Ismael Saibari after just 22 minutes – added the third in the final minute of stoppage time.Morocco will face the winner of Saturday’s other tie – Paraguay vs France – in Boston on Thursday.Canada’s loss ends a historic run for the World Cup cohosts, who won their first-ever knockout round match 1-0 against South Africa. The Canadians were playing in the World Cup for just the third time and their run enchanted a nation normally far more interested in hockey than football.Morocco, ranked sixth in the FIFA rankings, dispatched the Netherlands in a penalty shootout to reach the Round of 16 and send the Dutch to their earliest World Cup exit.