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DOHA, Qatar — Croatia came to the 2022 FIFA World Cup looking to improve on its performance from four years ago, but realistically, it seemed very unlikely considering it had made the final in Russia.
With aging stars and a fresh batch of new faces, Croatia was never really considered a contender to win the tournament, so finishing third with a 2-1 victory against Morocco at the Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday was a massive accomplishment. And Croatia celebrated it as such.
Josko Gvardiol, who was on the wrong end of a Lionel Messi highlight reel in the semifinal, and Mislav Orsic scored for Croatia, while Achraf Dari countered for Morocco.
Gvardiol scored on a well-rehearsed free kick, executed to perfection in the seventh minute and Dari tied it two minutes later, getting to the end of a Morocco free kick. Orsic scored the winner three minutes from halftime, picking the top corner on shot from the edge of the penalty area past Morocco’s Montreal-born goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
It was the second time the teams met in the tournament as they both came out of Canada’s group to get to the semifinal. Morocco is the first African team in the history of the tournament to make it to the semifinal.
“I have to congratulate my players for winning the third-place match, this was a tough match,” said Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic. “I have to also congratulate Morocco for their accomplishment. They put up a great fight, even though they were exhausted, they kept fighting until the end.”
It had been an exhausting emotional journey as well for Morocco. Backed by rabid supporters, Morocco willed itself to the semifinal before losing to France. It also gave everything in the third-place game, but came up against a pretty inspired Croatia team itself, who did not want to leave Qatar empty-handed after losing to Argentina in its semifinal.
“I’m very proud of my players, we showed that an African team can play with the best in the world,” said Morocco coach Walid Regragui. “Nobody gave us a chance when we got here and we were able to be one of the top four best teams.”
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