Match Report: Netherlands 1-1 Morocco (2-3 on pens)

The final whistle sparked unforgettable celebrations among the travelling Morocco supporters at the Estadio Monterrey, who had once again risen to the occasion.

Who else but Ismael Saibari to deliver Morocco into the last 16? The first African to score in three consecutive group-stage matches. His goalscoring carried the Atlas Lions through the group stage, and his chances nearly gave them a victory at multiple points in this game.

Ronald Koeman changed the Netherlands’ formation for the match, switching to a back five with Nathan Aké and Micky van de Ven both starting in defence. Crysencio Summerville also came into the team, replacing Donyell Malen in attack.

The Dutch enjoyed most of the possession in the opening stages but struggled to create clear chances. Instead, Morocco came closest to scoring when Bart Verbruggen produced two excellent saves to deny Bilal El Khannouss and Achraf Hakimi after 20 minutes.

The Netherlands’ first real opportunity came when Van de Ven struck from outside the box, but his effort was too close to the goalkeeper Bono, who pushed it over the crossbar.

Morocco almost took the lead just before half-time. A dangerous free kick caused problems in the penalty area, but Ismael Saibari could not convert from close range.

Morocco continued to threaten after the restart. Hakimi hit the crossbar before Van de Ven made an important defensive challenge to stop the right-back when he was through on goal.

With 20 minutes remaining and Morocco on top, Koeman switched back to a 4-3-3 formation. Teun Koopmeiners replaced Aké, while Wout Weghorst came on for Brian Brobbey. The substitutions quickly made a difference. Weghorst flicked on a long pass, Summerville burst forward and despite losing his balance, still managed to square the ball to Cody Gakpo, who fired the Netherlands into the lead.

It was an emotional moment for Gakpo, who was left in tears after scoring. Earlier in the week, he had shared that he and his partner had lost their unborn child. His teammates immediately gathered around him, embracing him in a touching show of support.

The Netherlands looked set to hold on for victory, but Morocco struck in the 90th minute. Substitute Chemsdine Talbi delivered a superb cross into the box, where Issa Diop rose highest to power home the equaliser.

Extra-time followed, and Verbruggen kept the Dutch in the match with a superb close-range save to deny Soufiane Rahimi.

The tie was eventually decided by penalties. Morocco missed their opening spot kick, giving the Netherlands an early advantage. However, Justin Kluivert, Quinten Timber and Crysencio Summerville all failed to convert their penalties. Ismael Saibari calmly converted the decisive penalty to seal a 3-2 shoot-out victory for the Atlas Lions and keep their remarkable FIFA World Cup journey alive.

Morocco are now unbeaten in their last four FIFA World Cup matches. Their longest unbeaten run in the competition remains six games, which they achieved between 25 June 2018 and 10 December 2022. The Netherlands may be out of the competition, but they leave with a new record after going 16 consecutive World Cup matches unbeaten in normal time, the longest unbeaten run in World Cup history.