Team USA was knocked out of the 2024 Olympics at the hands of Morocco on Friday. The American men were essentially outplayed by the formidable North African side for much of the match. In the end, Morocco thumped the USA by a score of 4-0 to end USA’s hopes of an Olympic medal in men’s soccer.
The Americans previously qualified for the quarterfinals by finishing second in Group A behind France. After dropping their first matchup of the competition against the hosts, USA then topped New Zealand and Guinea. As a result, the American men advanced to the knockout stage at the Olympics for the first time since 2000.
Morocco, on the other hand, won Group B thanks to their fairly controversial victory against Argentina on July 24th. The two teams finished level on points, but Morocco edged out the South Americans due to their victory. The African side is led by the tournament’s current leading scorer Soufiane Rahimi. Paris Saint-Germain star Achraf Hakimi also captains the team.
Team USA manager Marko Mitrović only made one change to his starting lineup compared to their previous match. Jack McGlynn, making his first start of the 2024 Olympics, replaced Maximilian Dietz in midfield. The move was seen as a way to give the Americans more options in attack.
Both sides had decent scoring chances in the early stages of the matchup. Paxten Aaronson sent a shot just wide of the post from a dangerous position following a free kick in the ninth minute. The attacker, however, was slightly offside and a goal would not have counted even if he could have converted the chance. Goalkeeper Patrick Schulte then made a nice save on a shot by Ilias Akhomach four minutes later.
After a bit of a dry spell for both sides, Morocco earned a penalty kick in the 26th minute of the match. American defender Nathan Harriel first bizarrely played the ball out of play to give his opponents a corner kick instead of sending a pass to Schulte. Although the ensuing set piece did not result in a goal, Harriel brought down Rahimi inside the box moments later for the penalty.
The Moroccan striker eventually stepped up and converted the big chance to give his team the early lead. Schulte guessed the correct direction of the shot, but the ball was slotted just out of the reach of the young goalkeeper. It was Rahimi’s fifth goal of the tournament.
Morocco ended the first half undoubtedly on the front foot. The goal from the spot certainly seemed to give the African side a shot of confidence. Nevertheless, team USA came out of the halftime break looking a bit better going forward. The Americans finally collected their first shot on target of the game in the 49th minute. After winning a corner kick, captain Tanner Tessmann sent a header on goal, but it was directly at Morocco’s keeper.
Miles Robinson then had a glorious chance to level the scoreline in the 59th minute. The defender, however, pulled his shot well wide of the post just a few yards in front of goal. Despite Team USA’s resurgence, Morocco eventually doubled their lead in the 63rd minute.
Abde Ezzalzouli collected possession out on the left flank, kept the ball in play, and raced towards the American goal. The attacker then played a perfect low cross to teammate Akhomach in the box. The Villarreal winger easily placed a shot past Schulte and into the back of the net.
Hakimi, playing at his home PSG stadium, added to the lead just seven minutes later. The defender first won a header and collected the ensuing pass to himself. Free to run towards Schulte, the Moroccan captain strolled to the edge of the opposing box and sent a low shot into the bottom corner of the net.
Morocco finished off their scoring thanks to a harsh penalty call. El Mehdi Maouhoub stepped up to take the shot after previously entering the fray for Rahimi. The striker, who just signed for Dynamo Moscow, converted the shot emphatically beyond the diving Schulte. Morocco will next face the winner of Japan and Spain in the semifinals on Monday.
PHOTOS: IMAGO
