Morocco beat Scotland 1-0 to go top of Group C as Saibari creates World Cup history

Morocco continued their outstanding FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Scotland on Friday. An early strike from Ismael Saibari proved enough to secure all three points and put the African side in a strong position to reach the knockout stage.

The result lifted Morocco to the top of Group C with four points from two matches, while Scotland now face a difficult final group game against Brazil.

Saibari strikes inside two minutes

Morocco made the perfect start and stunned Scotland almost immediately after kick-off.

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Just 71 seconds into the match, Brahim Diaz played a perfectly weighted pass through the Scottish defence. Ismael Saibari timed his run brilliantly before calmly finishing past the goalkeeper to score the fastest goal of the tournament so far.

The goal was Saibari’s second of the World Cup after also finding the net in Morocco’s opening draw against Brazil.

After taking the lead, Morocco controlled large parts of the game and rarely allowed Scotland to settle.

The North Africans pressed aggressively, kept possession well and repeatedly pushed Scotland back into their own half. Azzedine Ounahi was imaginative and troublesome, while Achraf Hakimi was dominant at right-back.

Morocco should have doubled their lead when Ounahi delivered a dangerous cross into the box, but could not find the finish from any teammate.

Scotland struggled to create meaningful chances and spent most of the first half defending. Their first attempt on goal arrived only during injury time when Lyndon Dykes fired harmlessly over the crossbar.

Scotland showed more urgency in the second half as they searched for an equaliser.

However, Morocco remained the more threatening side. Saibari nearly grabbed his second goal of the night when a deflected effort struck the post, while El Khannouss also forced goalkeeper Angus Gunn into an important save.

Despite enjoying more possession later in the game, Scotland found it difficult to break through Morocco’s organised defence.

Morocco close in on knockout spot

Morocco successfully protected their lead during the closing stages and comfortably saw out the contest.

The victory moves them to four points in Group C ahead of their final group match against Haiti. Scotland remain on three points and will need a strong result against five-time world champions Brazil to boost their hopes of reaching the knockout rounds.

With another confident display, Morocco once again showed why they are considered one of the most dangerous teams outside the traditional World Cup favourites. Their place in the next round is now firmly within reach.