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Croatia left Qatar on a high note after defeating injury-plagued Morocco 2-1 in the World Cup third-place playoff on Saturday. They had once again surpassed expectations after reaching the final in 2018.
Despite losing, Morocco can still be proud of themselves for being the first African team to advance to a World Cup semifinal.
Two early goals inside the first nine minutes set the tone for a tense match, with Achraf Dari canceling out Josko Gvardiol’s opening goal for Croatia. Mislav Orsic’s late first-half goal was sufficient to end the match.
The bronze medal may have been little more than solace for Croatia and Morocco after their semi-final exits to Argentina and France, respectively, but both teams appeared eager to avenge their semi-final losses.
Croatia earned it after controlling the early going and taking advantage of opportunities with efficiency, while Morocco was left wondering what might have been after missing several opportunities.
“This is bronze with a golden glow. We won a tough game. This is a medal for the Croatian people… It’s really great that we won two medals in two tournaments, big congratulations to my players.” said Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic.
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