For a long time, I haven't enjoyed football like I did tonight. The last time I felt this way was when Liverpool played against Barcelona in the Champions League. Liverpool were on the brink of crashing out of the Champions after losing to Barcelona at Camp Nou, the return leg at Anfield gave me so much pressure as a Liverpool fan.
With every goal Liverpool scored, my heart pounded really hard until the fourth goal was scored. The match between Morocco and Spain brought back the feeling of a real competitive match, and for the first time in this World Cup, I was under pressure.
I can't imagine what it felt like for the Moroccans who actually played and defended with their lives for the whole 120 minutes, they were destined to go through to the quarter-final.
In my previous post, I mentioned that I am waiting for an upset and it happened. I never underrated Morocco because those guys were incredible from the start to this very moment.
What Morocco did in the group stage of the World Cup was just too impressive and I wish they made it to at least the semi-final. That's a crazy wish but it cost nothing to make wishes, so I am taking advantage of that.
Morocco stunned the world by grabbing the ticket to the next round of the World Cup after defeating almighty Spain in the knockout round of the competition.
It was quite impossible to many until it happened and I am glad not because I am an African but because of the wrong choices of players the Spanish coach made with the players he brought to the World Cup.
Luis Enrique's choice of players was great and it baffles me how the likes of De Gea, Sergio Ramos, Thiago Alcantara, and a few others didn't make the list. Spain went with one of the youngest squads to the World Cup and the lack of experience in the team ended their journey at the point they weren't expecting.
De Gea should be the number one choice for Spain, for no reason should he be left out of Spain's World Cup squad. Thiago Alcantara in Spain's midfield is a boost to their attack, his wonder crosses are something I admire a lot and he could have created chances somehow.
César Azpilicueta and Koke were left on the bench in a must-win match for Spain, these are players that can create chances with their experience and I wondered what Luis Enrique was thinking on a big stage like the World Cup. Nothing can be done to change what has happened and the Spanish National team will have to live with the pain of crashing out against Morocco for a while.
For the third consecutive time, Spain crashed out of the World Cup in the round of 16. This was exactly what we saw in Russia, they crashed out after losing to Russia on penalty and it was even worse in Qatar because they couldn't score one penalty against Morocco.
It must be a really disappointing one and I hope to see them in the next World Cup with the right set of players. Someone actually said my claims about the wrong choice of players was wrong because this same set of players messed up in 2018.
That's true but you can't throw them out because of what happened in Russia. Argentina didn't depend on their fresh legs, likewise France and every manager must create a balance between age and experience.
Enrique should have ensure both experience and the youth get along together, it could have been a different story tonight.
Morocco's breakthrough is a joy for Africans and it feels good to see them break the quarterfinal deadlock in style. 120 minutes without conceding against Spain is huge and every Moroccan player from tonight's match deserves applause. I don't know what their fate at the World Cup is but they have definitely registered their name on the heart of every football lover across the globe.
Honestly, I hope to see more competitive matches in the World Cup like the Spain vs Morocco fixture.
