For nearly half an hour, Haiti held a lead against Morocco. The scoring started in the 10th minute when Joseph’s shot deflected off of Bounou, resulting in an own goal. The 25-year-old Ferencvaros forward was only brought on late during the first two matches.
The goal was mainly credited to Duverne (28, from Gent): the Haitian full-back received a pass on the wing and delivered a low cross which Joseph finished with a shot. The goal could be considered fortunate—it essentially was an own goal: Joseph’s shot deflected off Bounou’s back as he attempted to intercept the cross.
🤯 Haiti leads 2-1, but Morocco rallies to advance to the round of 32
Following Hakimi’s equalizer (40′), Haiti shocked everyone by reclaiming a 2-1 lead. This time, their goal was skillfully executed rather than reliant on luck: Duverne regained possession and passed to Isidor (from Sunderland), who launched a phenomenal shot from outside the box, hitting the top corner perfectly.
Thanks to this goal, Isidor became Haiti’s second-ever World Cup scorer; the first and only one prior to him was Emmanuel Sanon, who netted twice during the 1974 World Cup against Italy and Argentina.
In first-half stoppage time, Morocco equalized at 2-2 thanks to Saibari, assisted by Hakimi: he made history as the first African player to score in all three group-stage matches.
Morocco dominated the second half, coming close to taking the lead multiple times until Rahimi scored in the 78th minute: it was a beautifully executed shot from a corner routine that hit the top corner. Towards the end of the game, Yassine secured a 4-2 lead (after coming on in the second half) with a finish following another assist from Rahimi.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.