Saturday, September 5, 2026

Morocco thrash co-hosts Canada 3-0 to reach World Cup quarter-finals

Azzedine Ounahi opened the scoring for Morocco in the 50th minute.

and • July 4, 2026
Atlas Lions of Morocco
Atlas Lions of Morocco [Credit: LEADERSHIP Newspapers]

The Atlas Lions of Morocco are through to the quarterfinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup following an emphatic 3-0 win over co-hosts Canada in their round of 16 match at the Houston Stadium on Saturday. 

Nothing separated the two sides at halftime as underdog Canada successfully contained Morocco’s attacking threat.

However, the Canadians could only hold their ground until the 50th minute when Azzedine Ounahi finally broke the deadlock after firing home a pass from Achraf Hakimi from the edge of the box. 

The two teams kept up the pressure afterwards, with Canada coming close on several occasions but failing to score. 

On the other end, Ounahi doubled Morocco’s lead in the 82nd minute, firing a pass from Brahim Diaz into the roof of the net to grab his brace before Soufiane Rahimi sealed the victory in stoppage time. 

Following their historic semi-final run at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the Moroccans are showing the world that the feat was not a fluke.

Morocco will face the winner of the round-of-16 match between France and Paraguay later on Saturday for a place in the semifinals. 

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Cross River State CP Ajo Ordue

States

Cross River CP reads riot act to officers against illegal detention, extortiong

Mr Eitokpah said the approach would strengthen effective supervision and discipline within the command.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

World

I’m not their fan, happy Harry, Meghan returned to UK: Trump

“If I were the royal family, I would not have taken them back,” Mr Trump said.

Victoria Oluwakotanmi

World

What Nigerians should know about newly crowned Miss Grand USA 2026 Victoria Oluwakotanmi

Miss Oluwakotanmi will represent the U.S. at the Miss Grand International 2026 pageant holding in Thailand from September 18 to October 10.

JAMB

NationWide

JAMB releases underage UTME results, clarifies admission conditions

Mr ‎Benjamin said that the release of the results did not confer eligibility for admission on underage candidates.

Plateau State governor, Caleb Mutfwang

Heading 4

Diphtheria: Gov. Mutfwang orders closure of Plateau schools from Monday

Mr Mutfwang appreciated the stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation.