Netherlands 1-1 Morocco (aet, 2-3 pens): FIFA World Cup 2026. Yassine Bounou was the hero for Morocco as they defeated the Netherlands 3-2 on penalties in the World Cup round of 32, after the tie finished 1-1 after extra time.
The Morocco goalkeeper saved Crysencio Summerville’s penalty before Ismael Saibari scored the decisive spot-kick to seal a last-16 clash with co-hosts Canada.
It was the goalkeepers who stood out in the first half, with Bart Verbruggen making a fantastic reflex save to deny Neil El Aynaoui’s flick-on from a corner.
The Dutch shot-stopper was on hand again to tip Achraf Hakimi‘s long shot over the bar, while Bounou did the same at the other end to keep out a fierce strike from Micky van de Ven.
Morocco were on top after the break; Hakimi crashed an effort against the crossbar in the 52nd minute before Van de Ven denied the Atlas Lions captain with a last-ditch block.
However, it was a Dutch substitute who changed the game. Wout Weghorst came on in the 71st minute and made an immediate impact as his header from a long ball sent Summerville through on goal, and the winger squared to Gakpo for a simple finish.
Morocco have now won both of their World Cup penalty shoot-outs, also defeating Spain in the 2022 round of 16, and they will no doubt fancy themselves against Canada in the next round.
Netherlands, meanwhile, started a match with a back five for just the first time since March 2024 (a 2-1 defeat against Germany), playing their 31 matches in between with four defenders.
Only Dennis Bergkamp (10) has scored more goals for Netherlands at major tournaments (Euros or World Cup) than Gakpo (nine), while only Johnny Rep (seven) can better Gakpo’s six goals at the World Cup.
Verbruggen did his best to secure victory, making five saves and coming incredibly close to keeping Rahimi’s penalty out, but it was not to be for Netherlands on this occasion.