Morocco held Croatia to a 0-0 draw in their opening game of the World Cup on Wednesday, producing a spirited display against the 2018 runners-up led by Luka Modric.

Backed by Qatar’s large Moroccan community at the Al Bayt Stadium, the Atlas Lions followed up north African rivals Tunisia’s strong performance against dark horses Denmark a day earlier to frustrate Croatia.

Coach Zlatko Dalic had urged Croatia to exercise caution following Saudi Arabia’s shock win over Argentina, a result Morocco captain Romain Saiss said had “opened the door” for the tournament’s less-fancied teams.

Morocco took the game to a Croatia side featuring four players who started the 2018 final but struggled to create genuine chances against a defence marshalled by the experienced Dejan Lovren.

Azzedine Ounahi strangely opted against shooting when well placed inside the area, with Hakim Ziyech and Achraf Hakimi heavily involved down the right without exerting undue pressure on Croatia.

Ivan Perisic fired just over from distance for Croatia after intercepting a dreadful pass from Selim Amallah, while goalkeeper Yassine Bounou blocked well with his legs to deny Nikola Vlasic from close range.

Modric, the former Ballon d’Or winner appearing at his fourth World Cup at the age of 37, then hammered over from the edge of the box.

Morocco lost Noussair Mazraoui early in the second half after his diving header was saved, the Bayern Munich full-back injuring himself when he tumbled awkwardly to the ground.

Sofyan Amrabat poked Lovren’s goal-bound effort away off the line after a scramble at a corner, while Hakimi’s free-kick at the other end was beaten to safety by Croatian keeper Dominik Livakovic.

Only once have Morocco gone beyond the group stage, in 1986, but they will rate their chances of advancing with games to come against an ageing Belgium team and Group F outsiders Canada.

Croatia pushed for a late winner but found Morocco’s defence in unforgiving mood as Walid Regragui’s side secured a valuable and deserved point.

Source: AFP

Olivier Giroud joined Thierry Henry as France’s all-time leading goalscorer with a brace as holders France recovered to beat Australia 4-1 and get their defence of the World Cup off to a winning start Tuesday.

Australia took a shock lead at Al Janoub Stadium with the game just nine minutes old when Craig Goodwin scored.

France, whose build-up to the tournament was marred by injuries, saw left-back Lucas Hernandez come off hurt in the move that led to that goal.

However, they recovered to equalise through Adrien Rabiot before Giroud put them ahead with an easy finish in the 32nd minute for his 50th international goal.

Kylian Mbappe got his name on the scoresheet in the second half and Giroud sealed the win to equal Henry’s record tally of 51 goals for France.

The win leaves them top of Group D after rivals Denmark and Tunisia drew 0-0 in Doha earlier.

At the age of 36, veteran AC Milan striker Giroud, who has 115 caps, is the oldest player to score for France at a World Cup.

Yet he almost certainly would not have been playing here had Karim Benzema been fit.

Instead, the withdrawal of the Ballon d’Or winner with a thigh injury on the eve of the tournament has played into the hands of Giroud, who was a key player for coach Didier Deschamps in France’s triumphant 2018 World Cup campaign but didn’t score in Russia.

It is not just Benzema who is missing for Les Bleus, with Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kante –- their starting midfield duo four years ago –- also out of the tournament.

Centre-back Raphael Varane was not risked having not played since suffering a leg injury playing for Manchester United a month ago.

That meant Dayot Upamecano and Ibrahima Konate –- with nine caps between them –- played together in central defence while Rabiot joined Aurelien Tchouameni in midfield.

Hernandez injury blow

Australia stunned the world champions by scoring an early opener.

Mathew Leckie controlled the ball on the right and escaped Lucas Hernandez before delivering a low ball across the face of goal for Goodwin to finish into the roof of the net.

Hernandez hurt his right knee trying to stop Leckie, although there did not appear to be any contact between the players.

The Bayern Munich defender was helped off, with his brother Theo coming on.

The younger Hernandez did not have the best introduction, giving the ball away and allowing Mitch Duke to hit a shot from range that flew just wide.

Yet he played a part in the 27th-minute equaliser –- Antoine Griezmann’s right-wing corner was cleared but the ball came to Hernandez on the left and his cross was headed in by Rabiot.

Five minutes later Rabiot was involved again as France went ahead, hounding Nathaniel Atkinson out of possession on the French left and playing a one-two with Mbappe before teeing up Giroud.

A Jackson Irvine header that hit the post in first-half stoppage time was a reminder that Australia could still threaten, but France ran away with the game after the break.

Griezmann had a shot cleared off the line just before Mbappe made it 3-1 midway through the second half, as he headed in off a post from Ousmane Dembele’s cross.

Mbappe then turned provider as France got their fourth in the 71st minute, crossing for Giroud to head in a historic goal.

After all the injuries, and after seeing what happened to Argentina earlier, this was a good evening for France.

Source: AFP

Denmark have settled for a single point on their Group D opener, after a blank draw against Tunisia at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan.

The Africans were the side to assert themselves on the game in the first-half. They had a great chance to take the lead shortly before half-time but Issam Jebeli’s chipped effort from close-range was spectacularly saved by Kasper Schmeichel.

Denmark paced it up in the second period and had a superb opportunity to grab the lead 20 minutes from time but Andreas Cornelius squandered that as the two sides played out the goalless draw.

Switzerland hope to secure early points in a tough Group G when they face Cameroon in their World Cup opener on Thursday after a year of solid performances on the European stage.

The Swiss reached the Euro 2020 quarter-finals before losing a penalty shootout to Spain. They also finished ahead of Italy in their World Cup qualifying group to avoid the playoffs.

With Granit Xhaka anchoring the midfield and Xherdan Shaqiri commanding the flank, Switzerland are expected to dominate Cameroon and, at the very least, cause trouble for their other group opponents Serbia and favourites Brazil.

The biggest question mark comes between the posts. Manager Murat Yakin has selected four goalkeepers due to injury concerns over starter Yann Sommer and back-up Jonas Omlin, calling up RB Salzburg’s Philipp Kohn as one of two uncapped members of the squad.

Although Cameroon are considered the least likely side in the section to reach the round of 16, the attacking talent of players such as Napoli’s Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa has the potential to rattle the Swiss defence.

But Cameroon — playing in an eighth World Cup, a record number of appearances for an African nation — have failed to leave their mark at the finals since the 1990 edition of the tournament, when they dazzled by reaching the quarter-finals.

The Indomitable Lions have gone out at the group stage of all the World Cups they have played in since their 1990 exploits, winning only one of 15 matches.

Cameroon will aim to at least get another World Cup victory this time, a task that could prove difficult for a side that qualified thanks to a stoppage-time goal at the end of extra time in the second leg of their playoff tie away to Algeria.

Source: Reuters

Lionel Messi said Argentina’s shock loss to Saudi Arabia was a “very heavy blow” but vowed the South American champions would bounce back from the defeat.

“It’s a very heavy blow, a defeat that hurts, but we must continue to have confidence in ourselves,” Messi said after Argentina crashed to a stunning 2-1 loss in Group C.

“This group is not going to give up. We will try to beat Mexico,” he added.

Messi gave Argentina a 10th-minute lead from the penalty spot on Tuesday at the Lusail stadium but second-half goals from Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari helped the Saudis pull off one of the greatest shocks in World Cup history.

It could have been so different but for three tight offside calls in the first half that went against Argentina, denying them three potential goals.

In the second half, coach Lionel Scaloni’s men failed to exploit the Saudis’ high defensive line in the way they had managed before the break.

“We know that Saudi Arabia is a team with good players, who move the ball around well and play a high line,” said Messi.

“We worked on that but we rushed it a bit. There are no excuses, we’re going to be more united than ever before.

“This group is strong and has shown it before. We had not been in this situation for a long time. Now we must show that this is a true group.”

The Albiceleste have two Group C games remaining — against Mexico on Saturday and then Poland the following Wednesday — to try to salvage their hopes of claiming a third world title.

Playing in his fifth and probably final World Cup, Messi has the weight of an entire nation’s expectations on his shoulders.

One of the greatest players of all time, this may be his last chance to lift football’s greatest prize, which his predecessor as Argentina’s idol Diego Maradona did in 1986.

“We have to go back to the basics of who we are. We have to think about what’s coming next,” said the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner.

Source: AFP

Saudi Arabia stunned Lionel Messi’s Argentina on Tuesday, beating the two-time winners 2-1 in one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.

Salem Al-Dawsari hit a stunning winner to sink the red-hot favourites, bringing the South American side’s 36-match unbeaten run to a shuddering halt.

The win was fully deserved after Saudi Arabia came from behind after Saleh Al-Shehri cancelled out an early Lionel Messi penalty.

Playing a risky high defensive line, the athletic Saudis rode their luck in the first half when three times Argentina had the ball in the net only to be denied by an offside call.

But in a chaotic start to the second half, the Saudis swarmed all over Lionel Scaloni’s team and scored twice as the Arab nation beat the South Americans for the first time in five attempts.

In a first half dominated by Argentina, it seemed only a matter of time before Saudi Arabia’s risky defensive tactics would cost them.

That condensed the game into a sliver of green turf around the halfway line as the Asian side happily allowed Argentina’s back four to pass the ball among themselves.

It seemed Saudi Arabia were facing a long afternoon after VAR intervened to award a penalty when Saud Abdulhamid wrestled Leandro Paredes to the ground in the box at a corner.

Messi waited for goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais to dive to his left before cooly rolling the ball into the opposite corner.

But if the Saudis felt aggrieved at the technology, it would later help keep them in the game.

Three times Argentina had the ball in the net only to be denied by razor-tight offside calls, the first given by VAR.

There was no controversy about the equaliser three minutes into the second half, though, as Al-Shehri ran onto a touch from Feras Al-Brikan, beat Cristian Romero on the outside and slotted the ball back across goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and into the far corner.

The sizeable Saudi contingent in the Lusail stadium — where the World Cup final will be held — exploded in joy.

Suddenly the Argentines were rattled and five minutes later the turnaround was complete.

Al-Dawsari’s clever turn in the box beat two defenders before he shifted the ball past a third and rifled an unstoppable shot into the top far corner.

The crowd was going wild and Hassan Al-Tambakti punched the air in delight after his desperate sliding tackle denied Messi a clear shot at goal.

Every Al-Owais save, including a point-blank block from Nicolas Tagliafico’s close-range prod, was greeted with rapturous cheers.

There was late drama after Al-Owais collided with Yasser Al-Shahrani and seemed to knock him out as his knee struck the defender’s head.

Source: AFP