The Spanish ran out of ideas against Morocco. They recorded just one shot on target in the first half, their worst first half in that respect at a World Cup since 1966. As the game progressed, the chances came, but the goals just did not.
Despite having the ball 77 per cent of the time, Spain let the game go to penalties. In the shootout, three of their players failed to score, and it was Morocco, who pulled off a huge upset to progress.
Let's start our dive into the data with the average position of the Spaniards in the match. From the graphic below, you can clearly see how high they played, keeping the ball in Morocco's half for most of the game. But it was a toothless attack, in the end, that led to minimal chances.
We can also take a look at Morocco and, specifically, their right back Achraf Hakimi (24). You can see by his heatmap just how lively he was in the match. And while most of his work was obviously defensive in the match, he was still active going forward. Considering how little possession Morocco has, his endeavour was admirable.
Now let’s look at the game’s most important part - the penalty shootout. It was Spain's fourth shootout loss at a World Cup, the most by any team, in fact.
Just before the shootout, coach Luis Enrique sent penalty specialist Pablo Sarabia (30) onto the pitch in place of Nico Williams (20), and the graphic below shows that his last 13 penalty attempts - all of them were successful. But in this match, and perhaps in the most important moment of his career, he failed and hit the post.
So, the Moroccans could rejoice as they became only the fourth African team to ever reach the quarter-finals at a World Cup. Coach Walid Regragui (47) is the first African coach to do so - perhaps the reason his players were throwing him into the air in celebration after the game.
After much talk before the game, Portugal started against Switzerland without Cristiano Ronaldo (37), but it can't be said that their performance suffered as a result of his absence. The six goals they scored in the Swiss net are the best possible proof of that.
Goncalo Ramos (21) was the star of the match, scoring three goals and assisting another. He is the first player since Miroslav Klose in 2002 to score three goals in his first-ever World Cup start. Adding to that incredible stat, he had played just 36 minutes for Portugal before the game against Switzerland.
Another important figure in the match was Portugal’s central defender Pepe (39). He managed to recover to full fitness before the championship and at thirty-nine years old became the oldest goal scorer in the history of the World Cup knockout phase. You can tell from his heatmap against the Swiss that Pepe belied his age, showing a lot of range for a defender.
And finally, let’s focus on Joao Felix (23). In the graphic, you can see all the passes the Atletico Madrid star made in the match. He completed three accurate passes into the box throughout the match, two of which ended in goals. You can also see from the minimal number of red lines that Felix was superbly accurate with his passing in the match.
The Spaniards were left in sorrow as the Moroccans celebrated their historic progression to the quarter-finals, and the Swiss were left shattered by the purring Portuguese.
We now have our final eight teams left to compete at the World Cup in Qatar - we will be back after Friday's matches for more analysis from this incredibly enthralling tournament.
Until then, have a great week!
