Yassine Bounou, Achraf Hakimi the heroes as Morocco defeat Spain 3-0 in penalty shootout in Round of 16 match

After battling for 120 minutes without a goal, Morocco and Spain will enter the penalty shootout to see who advances to the quarterfinal round at the 2022 World Cup. Morocco and Spain each had some great chances to end this match in regulation and extra time but both goalkeepers have held their nerve to force this shootout. They’ll have to come up with some big saves here to keep their sides in the contest. As a reminder, there will be at least five kicks each unless one side has clearly gained the edge.

Morocco came into this match as heavy underdogs at DraftKings Sportsbook but have fought admirably and now have a golden chance to upset Spain. The Spanish will be hoping to avoid a massive disappointment here, but they’ve looked shaky since the 7-0 drubbing of Costa Rica in the opening group stage match.

Here we’ll be tracking the penalty shootout between Morocco and Spain.

Morocco vs. Spain penalty kicks recap

Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou is the hero for Morocco, saving three penalties one day after Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic did the same in his side’s shootout. Hakimi and Ziyech, the stalwarts for Morocco, both hit their shots and the underdogs will see another day in the 2022 World Cup.

HAKIMI SENDS MOROCCO THROUGH! The versatile winger puts his shot home and the African side are into the quarterfinal. The Cinderella story continues for Morocco, while Spain crash out of the World Cup.

Sergio Busquets steps up for Spain’s third kick, but he also misses! The stadium is exploding with Morocco fans feeling a win here. They need to sink one more shot to win the shootout.

Unai Simon stops Badr Benoun’s shot to keep Spain alive. It’s still 2-0 Morocco with Spain taking the third shot.

ANOTHER SAVE FOR MOROCCO! Soler doesn’t convert his shot and now Morocco have a big edge after two kicks each.

Hakim Ziyech steps up for Morocco’s second shot and converts to put his side up 2-0. The Morocco fans are getting louder and louder!

Pablo Sarabia steps up for Spain’s first shot. He hits the post! It’s 1-0 to Morocco after one kick each.

Abdelhamid Sabiri takes the first shot for Morocco. He sinks it to put his side up 1-0.

The penalties will be taken at the end where there are more Spain fans according to the broadcast, but Morocco will be taking the first kick. Teams the take the first shot in the shootout tend to win more often.