Morocco end host Canada's run, Mbappe draws level with Messi

Friday’s round of 16 knocked a co-host out of its own tournament and closed the book on the competition’s best underdog story, both inside one sweaty North American afternoon.

Morocco send the hosts packing

Canada’s World Cup ended in Houston, and it wasn’t close. Azzedine Ounahi scored twice, in the 50th minute off a Hakimi assist and again in the 82nd after Brahim Diaz sprung him on the counter, before Soufiane Rahimi added a third deep into stoppage time to make it 3-0. Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou did his part too, denying Tani Oluwaseyi in the first half before Morocco pulled away. Canada becomes the first co-host eliminated from the tournament it was supposed to be celebrating, and the home fans in Houston spent the last twenty minutes cheering for a team that wasn’t theirs. Morocco, back in the quarterfinals after their run to the semifinals in 2022, look like the real deal again, not a one-off.

Mbappe ends Paraguay’s fairy tale

Paraguay had already beaten Germany on penalties to get this far, but France finally found a way through, courtesy of Kylian Mbappe. His 70th-minute penalty, awarded after Diego Gomez tangled with substitute Desire Doue in the box and VAR sent the referee to the monitor, was enough to see France home 1-0 in Philadelphia. It was Mbappe’s seventh goal of the tournament, pulling him level with Lionel Messi at the top of the Golden Boot race. Paraguay didn’t make it easy, and Didier Deschamps admitted as much afterward: “I told my players, if we have played their game we won’t win. I told them, no gestures, no reactions. We had three yellows already.” His team took the hint. The Cinderella run stops here for Paraguay, in Philadelphia heat pushing 100 degrees that made the pitch feel more like a sauna.

Round of 16: Morocco 3-0 Canada, France 1-0 Paraguay.

Two quarterfinal spots filled, several more still up for grabs. Track the rest of the bracket on the live table.

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