Brahim Diaz became the first African player to record four assists in a single edition of the World Cup, reaching the record during Morocco's emphatic 3-0 victory over Canada in the Round of 16 at Houston Stadium on Saturday.
After a hard-fought, goalless first half, the Atlas Lions broke the deadlock in the 50th minute through Azzedine Ounahi , who capitalised on a clever set-piece routine orchestrated by Achraf Hakimi. The goal changed everything. Canada, who had pressed and hustled in the opening 45 minutes, suddenly found themselves chasing the game against one of the most organised defences in the tournament.
The floodgates then opened and Díaz was the man pulling the strings. In the 82nd minute, Díaz split Canada's defence with a perfectly weighted pass to Ounahi, who calmly finished to score Morocco's second goal of the match. In the eighth minute of stoppage time, Soufiane Rahimi steered past goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau from Díaz's selfless throughball to seal a 3-0 win.
Morocco have now progressed from four FIFA World Cup knockout matches, two in 2022 and two in 2026, as many as all other African nations combined. The Atlas Lions are genuinely dangerous, and Díaz is the reason why.
Coming into the Canada match, questions had swirled about Díaz's consistency. He had been brilliant against Brazil and Scotland in the group stage before going missing against Haiti. Against Canada, he answered every critic. Despite striker Ismael Saibari exiting early with an injury, Morocco's attack was clinical as they advanced to the quarter-finals.
Canada became the first of the three co-host nations to be eliminated from the tournament, but Canadian players can hold their heads high after qualifying for their first-ever knockout stage and winning their first-ever knockout match, beating South Africa in the Round of 32.
Morocco now advance to the quarter-finals, where they will face the winner of the France vs Paraguay match in Boston on July 9.
For Díaz, the record is just a number. For Morocco, the dream is very much alive.
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