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Morocco and Portugal will face off in a quarterfinal match on Saturday morning, with the winner heading to the semifinals and the loser heading home. The match is set to kick off at 10 a.m. ET from Al Thumama Stadium, with televised broadcasts on Fox and Telemundo.
Portugal come in as the heavy favorites to win in regular time, priced at -140 on the moneyline at DraftKings Sportsbook. Morocco are the underdogs at +475 with a regular time draw set at +260.
The Moroccans are coming off a huge win over Spain in the round of 16, as they ended 0-0 after 120 minutes and were able to beat the Spanish side 3-0 in a penalty shootout. It’s the first time in history Morocco has qualified for the quarterfinals, and they’ll look to take that momentum into the match against Portugal.
The Portuguese side steamrolled Switzerland in their round of 16 matchup with a 6-1 final score. Goncalo Ramos was the hero as he notched a hat trick and an assist as he took over the starting role from Cristiano Ronaldo, who only ended up playing 17 minutes.
Ahead of Saturday’s action, let’s take a look at the Morocco vs. Portugal history below.
Morocco vs. Portugal history
Who leads series: Tied, 1-1
Last match: June 20, 2018 (Portugal 1-0 Morocco)
These two sides have only met twice in their history, with the most recent coming in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. They were both drawn into Group B along with Spain and Iran as Spain and Portugal finished at the top of the group while Iran and Morocco went home.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored the lone goal in Portugal’s 1-0 win over Morocco in the group stage, coming in the fourth minute as the Moroccans chased the game for the rest of regular time.
The only other time they’ve met was in the 1986 World Cup group stage, with both teams being drawn into Group F with England and Poland. Morocco topped the group, grabbing a 3-1 win over Portugal in the process. The Portuguese side finished at the bottom of the group and made an early exit.