As the round of 16 gets going at this summer's FIFA World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico, here are how things went for Real Madrid stars in action.
Just hours after the completion of the round of 32 stage at this summer's FIFA World Cup, the round of 16 is already upon us. There is no rest for the wicked as they say. As quickly as 19:00 CET this evening, there was action for Real Madrid stars - Morocco faced Canada to kick the round off. Then, a few hours later, France took on Paraguay.
To begin, Brahim Diaz was named in the starting XI for Morocco, as they took on Canada in Houston. In the first half, The Atlas Lions found themselves under pressure, but the North American side could not convert their chances.
Then, in the second half, the game opened up, and Morocco took the lead just five minutes after the break. The game stayed at 1-0 for just over half an hour, before on the break, Diaz cut the ball back for a team mate to fire home.
In the final minute of stoppage time, on the counter attack, Diaz was again the provider as he slipped a team mate through on goal to make it 3-0 and secure their place in the quarter-finals. That is now four assists this tournament for the Real Madrid man.
Later on, Ibrahima Konate was again named on the bench by France manager Didier Deschamps, whilst Kylian Mbappe lead the line. Aurelien Tchouameni missed the game with an injury, and was replaced by AS Roma midfielder, Manu Kone in the middle of the park.
A very tough first half saw Les Blues create very few chances - just 0.05 xG - against a very resolute and extremely physical Paraguay side. The second half was the exact same, until it wasn't.
That's right. Not long before the second hydration break of the game - which was certainly justified on a day as hot as this - France were awarded a penalty for a clear trip in the box. Even then, the referee, who embarrassed himself throughout the game, needed to fall back on a monitor review.
Nevertheless, it was ultimately given, and Mbappe did the rest from the spot, scoring his 19th World Cup goal in as many games by sending the keeper the wrong way. From there, they were able to see the game out and pull off a huge 1-0 victory.
Well, in the quarter-finals, - as you may have noticed by a lack of update on Morocco's opponents earlier they will take on Diaz's side in Foxborough on Thursday at 22:00. Let's see.
