Portugal vs Morocco: Portugal national soccer team coach Fernando Santos has said he has no regrets benching Cristiano Ronaldo for their 2022 FIFA World Cup quarter-final clash against Morocco.
Portugal, which had arguably the best performance of any team at the Qatar 2022 World Cup in its 6-1 loss to Switzerland, fell to Morocco 1-0 in the quarterfinals. The defeat eliminated Portugal from the competition, meaning their wait to lift the FIFA World Cup title continues.
In the Portugal-Morocco match, Fernando Santos made only one change compared to the team that started against Switzerland. Rubén Neves entered the starting eleven to replace William Carvalho. That also meant that Cristiano Ronaldo once again started the game on the bench.
However, Portugal was nowhere near their impressive performance against Switzerland in this Portugal vs Morocco matchup. Morocco then stunned Portugal when they scored the first and only goal of the game in the 42nd minute. Youssef En-Nesyri put Morocco ahead with a jumping header.
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Portugal vs Morocco: Fernando Santos on benching Cristiano Ronaldo in FIFA World Cup Defeat Morocco
Fernando Santos brought on Cristiano Ronaldo in the 51st minute of the Portugal vs. Morocco match as they desperately sought a draw. It never came when Morocco knocked Portugal out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Fernando Santos’ decision to bench Cristiano Ronaldo for this important match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup drew criticism from many. He was asked if he regretted making that decision after the Portugal vs. Morocco game.
The Portugal coach gave a forceful answer to the question. “No, I don’t think so, I don’t regret it,” he said.
“I think this was a team that played very well against Switzerland. Cristiano Ronaldo is a great player, he came in when we thought it was necessary, so I don’t regret it”.
Meanwhile, it was a disappointing end to Portugal’s 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign as they were the favorites to advance from this quarter-final match. Despite boasting a star-studded attack, Portugal could not find a way to get past the determined Moroccan defense and score the equalizer.
Meanwhile, Morocco will face defending world champions France in the World Cup semifinals.
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