Croatia defeated Morocco 2-1 in the third-place game of the 2022 World Cup on Saturday at Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar.
Morocco, the first World Cup semifinalist in history, made their intentions clear by playing competitively against Croatia in their first match in Qatar.
With Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou coming dangerously close to putting the ball in his own net early on, the rematch was nothing like the cagey 0-0 draw in the group stage.
Croatia took an early lead as defender Josko Gvardiol headed in a goal seven minutes in.
Shortly after, Moroccan defender Achraf Dari scored his first international goal with a header.
However, Croatian winger Mislav Orsic scored the game-winning curling shot in the 42nd minute. The second half saw no goals.
Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri had a great chance to tie it up in the 75th minute, but Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic stopped the attempt.
Morocco enjoyed the most successful World Cup in African history despite the defeat. The country made history by being the first African team to go to the semifinals, where they lost to France.