Canada arrived at NRG Stadium as the host nation, with the crowd, the occasion, and every sporting reason to believe they could reach the last eight of a World Cup on home soil. Azzedine Ounahi had other ideas. The Moroccan midfielder scored twice and Soufiane Rahimi added a third deep in stoppage time as Morocco ended Canada's tournament with a 3-0 victory that was, in truth, considerably more comfortable than even that margin suggests.
The first half gave Canada encouragement they did not fully deserve. Jesse Marsch's side would finish the evening with 11 corners and seven shots inside the box, yet produced nothing of substance against a Moroccan backline that was rarely troubled. Yassine Bounou, behind a back four marshalled superbly by Noussair Mazraoui, needed to make only three saves across 90 minutes. Canada's expected goals figure of 0.86 flatters a team that created without real conviction, never quite finding the combination to open up a compact Moroccan shape that invited pressure and then absorbed it without fuss.
Morocco were content to sit, wait, and strike on their own terms. On 50 minutes the patience paid off. Achraf Hakimi drove a forward pass into the channel and Ounahi arrived in space to finish and make it 0-1. Whatever half-time adjustments Marsch had made were already irrelevant within five minutes of the restart, and Canada never recovered the footing they had spent most of the opening 45 minutes pretending they had. Morocco's ball circulation was unhurried and purposeful, their 82 per cent pass accuracy against Canada's 76 reflecting exactly who was in control of the match's tempo.
Canada pushed forward in search of a leveller and found only yellow cards. Four bookings across the evening reflected frustration rather than any genuine menace. Jonathan David, stationed as the focal point of the attack, was well marshalled throughout and rarely given a clean touch in dangerous areas. Tani Oluwaseyi showed the most energy before his 63rd-minute withdrawal, but the hosts lacked the craft to unlock a Moroccan midfield that was both disciplined and alert to the counter.
The second goal, on 82 minutes, killed any remaining hope. Brahim Diaz, Morocco's most creative force in advanced areas and the man who finished the match with two assists, threaded a pass through to Ounahi, who converted again. Two goals, both constructed with a simplicity that made Canada's defensive structure look short of ideas at the crucial moment.
Canada's 11 corners tell you everything about how the game was played and nothing about how threatening they were. Morocco had one corner. They needed no more.
Rahimi, on as a substitute, wrapped up the scoreline in the 98th minute with another ball from Diaz. Stephen Eustaquio was the pick of Canada's midfielders, covering ground and keeping his side organised even as the game drifted away from them, but there was too little quality around him to make the difference. Mazraoui was imperious at right back, Issa Diop solid beside him, and Morocco's defensive unit conceded nothing to a Canadian attack that had volume without danger.
Canada's World Cup is over. They hosted the tournament, carried genuine hope into the knockout rounds, and went out in Houston with 24 fouls committed and a goalkeeper who made one save against the opposition's three. Morocco march into the quarter-finals, and Ounahi leaves NRG Stadium as the name on everyone's lips.