The national football teams of Holland and Morocco lined up against each other in the fourth match of the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, starting at 05:30 this morning (Tuesday, 9 Cancer) Afghanistan time at the BBVA stadium in Monterrey, Mexico. Then came the competitions.
first half; Caution of both teams and a goalless draw
The first half of this match ended with the caution of both teams and a goalless draw. Both teams had opportunities to score, but the goalkeepers and defenses prevented the gates from opening.
the second half; Khakpo scored, Diop scored the most dramatic goal of the cup
In the second half, Cody Khakpo was able to open Morocco’s goal in the 72nd minute and give Holland the lead. Khakpo, who recently lost his unborn child, rejoiced with tears in his eyes after the goal, and Holland’s main and reserve players also celebrated with him. It seemed that this goal will lead the Three Lions to the next stage.
But in the most dramatic moment of the 2026 World Cup, Issa Diop scored Morocco’s equalizing goal in the 90+1 minute, sending the game into overtime. This goal, which was scored in the last seconds of the lost time, gave a big shock to the Orange Tulips and delayed their dream of promotion. In the extra 30 minutes, no goals were exchanged to decide the fate of the winning team in the penalty shootout.
penalty kicks; Morocco completed the shock
In the penalty shootout, Theon Koopminers and Vot Wekhorsht scored for Holland, and Justin Kluivert, Quinten Timber and Cresencio Somerville missed their penalties. From Morocco, Sofyan Rahimi, Shamsuddin Talebi and Ismail Sibari converted their balls into goals and Neil Al-Ainawi and Ashraf Hakimi wasted their penalties so that Morocco won with a result of 3-2 and achieved the second biggest surprise of the cup.
Wilton Sampaio from Brazil was in charge of judging this game and showed a yellow card to Issa Diop from Morocco.
Morocco, which was a surprise in the 2022 World Cup and stood in the fourth place of this tournament, will line up against Canada in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup on the 14th of Cancer.
With this historic victory, Morocco became the second biggest surprise of the 2026 World Cup after Paraguay (who eliminated Germany). The Lions of Atlas, who were a surprise in the 2022 World Cup by advancing to the semi-finals, once again proved their ability to eliminate big teams.
Issa Diop’s goal in the 90+1 minute is undoubtedly the most dramatic goal of this World Cup so far and proved once again that football does not end until the final whistle. The Netherlands, which was also eliminated by Argentina in the quarterfinals in the 2022 World Cup, experienced a bitter farewell to the World Cup.
According to football experts, this game was a classic lesson in “never giving up”. Observers say Morocco never gave up despite trailing the Netherlands until the final minutes and pulled off the second biggest surprise of the cup with a goal in stoppage time and then victory on penalties.
Orange tulips, who had celebrated their superiority with Khakpo’s goal and his emotional happiness, were in a big shock and showed once again that football is a game of moments and nothing is certain until the final whistle.
