Morocco vs Portugal - World Cup 2022: Live score, team news and updates

13:58

Fernando Santos' men have five players who have been booked in Qatar so far, which means there is a high chance someone may miss out in the next round, should they get there.

Bruno Fernandes, Danilo Pereira, Ruben Neves, Joao Felix and Ruben Dias are the five who will have to hold back against Morocco - with all of those starting other than Danilo Pereira.

Fernandes and Neves are no strangers to yellow cards, often being booked for their clubs Manchester United and Wolves in the Premier League.

13:54

West Ham's Aguerd and Bayern Munich's Mazraoui will be big, big misses. Morocco have only conceded one goal so far at this tournament - including the penalty shoot-out against Spain - thanks to the back four of Hakimi, Aguerd, Saiss and Mazraoui.

Half of that foursome are out. 30-year-old Real Valladolid centre half El Yamiq and Attiyat Allah, who only has seven caps and plays for Wydad AC in Casablanca, Morocco, will have a tough task today stopping Portugal's attack.

The Iberian side cut loose, smashing six goals past Switzerland in the last 16, with Goncalo Ramos' introduction up front in place of Ronaldo helping things to click. How El Yamiq and Attiyat Allah fare will be crucial to the result.

13:47

Big shock in defence - with two changes to the best backline in the competition.

Centre back Nayef Aguerd and left-back Noussair Mazraoui are both out - presumably injured as they're not on the bench - with Jawad El Yamiq and Yahia Attiyat Allah coming in to replace them, respectively.

That's a huge double blow for the Atlas Lions, whose super-consistent back four was a massive part of why they've progressed so far.

13:46

Just the one change, then, from that last-16 thrashing of Switzerland - with Ruben Neves replacing William Carvalho at the base of midfield.

Obviously the big news is Cristiano Ronaldo - deservedly, some would say - remaining on the bench, with hat-trick hero Goncalo Ramos retaining his spot up front.

13:36

CONFIRMED: Cristiano Ronaldo does NOT start. He is left on the bench again.

Portugal XI (4-3-3): Costa; Dalot, Pepe, Dias, Guerreiro; Otavio, Neves, Bernardo Silva; Bruno Fernandes, Goncalo Ramos, Joao Felix.

13:27

Portuguese outlet A Bola have gone with almost the same team as the last-16 win against Switzerland, with just one key change.

That man Cristiano Ronaldo up top instead on Goncalo Ramos. That's just their predicted line-up at the moment.

I'll bring you more as I have it...

13:19

Erik ten Hag has accused Cristiano Ronaldo of double-crossing him over his acrimonious exit from Manchester United.

Ten Hag hit back on Friday at comments made by Ronaldo in last month’s explosive interview with Piers Morgan that he felt betrayed by the club and had no respect for the United boss.

The Dutchman claimed Ronaldo had, in fact, stabbed him in the back by waiting for the bombshell interview’s release before revealing for the first time that he wanted to quit Old Trafford.

Tell us how you really feel, Erik... click below for more

13:13

Socceroos legend Robbie Slater believes how Cristiano Ronaldo behaves on the bench could make or break Portugal's World Cup chances ahead of their quarter-final against tournament surprise package Morocco.

Slater, who played 44 internationals for Australia, said the maligned Manchester United striker needed to accept his role as a role-player for his national side in the twilight years in international competition.

Here's what the former Blackburn Rovers star had to say.

12:59

Ronaldo has found an unlikely ally in Roy Keane, who has defended the Portuguese for reacting angrily to being substituted in Portugal's final game of the group stages against South Korea.

And after Portugal's thumping 6-1 victory on the night, certain images appeared to show him walking off the pitch by himself.

But speaking to Gary Neville and Micah Richards during a World Cup chat for SkyBet, the Irishman defended his former teammate.

You can read more here.

12:44

Fernando Santos has opened up a frank conversation he had with Cristiano Ronaldo, in which he told the 37-year-old superstar he may have to get used to a place on the bench for Portugal. 

'I did it so he wouldn't be surprised. I invited him to my office and told him: "It's better for our strategy if you didn't play". I said I'd save him for the second half. Cristiano was not very happy about it. He has always been one of the starting players.'

You can read more from Fernando Santos here.

12:33

Sonny Bill Williams has thrown his support behind the Moroccan national team ahead of their huge World Cup quarter final clash against Portugal in Qatar.

The African side have captured the hearts and minds of legions of fans across the world with their brave, uncompromising style that has seen them eliminate Belgium and Spain at the tournament.

Before the shootout win over the Spaniards, Romain Saiss & Co were seen reciting the Quran and are the only Muslim-majority, Arabic-speaking country left in the tournament. And Williams, a devout Muslim, took to Twitter on Saturday to back the Moroccans to take another big scalp in Qatar.

Click below for more...

12:19

Fernando Santos' men dropped Cristiano Ronaldo from their starting line-up and were rewarded with a hat-trick from his replacement, Goncalo Ramos, as they thrashed Switzerland 6-1 in the last 16 on Tuesday.

Given Ramos' impact and Portugal's attacking cohesion after the former Manchester United star was dropped, it seems likely the 37-year-old veteran will be benched once again in their upcoming quarter-final.

But whoever they play up top, they will come up against a tough Morocco side with the best defence at the tournament, only conceding one goal - an own goal against Canada in their final group game.

The Atlas Lions have been one of the surprise packages of the tournament and Walid Regragui will be hoping to make his side the first ever African semi-finalists at the competition. 

12:12

Friday's match will only be the third ever meeting between the sides, with both previous encounters coming at the World Cup.

Morocco won a group-stage clash 3-1 in June 1986, before the Iberian outfit triumphed 1-0, also at the group stage, in summer 2018 (pictured below) at the last World Cup tournament, Cristiano Ronaldo's fourth-minute goal proving the winner.

Whatever happens on Friday, their third clash promises to be a humdinger.

12:05

Morocco are likely to be unchanged.

The tournament-leading defence will remain, assuming everyone is fit. In midfield, Abdelhamid Sabiri may replace Selim Amallah but it appears unlikely.

In attack, the front three of Sofiane Boufal and Hakim Ziyech flanking Youssef En-Nesyri has threatened throughout the tournament. 

11:57

Portugal's back four is fairly settled, although Joao Cancelo may replace Diogo Dalot at right back. 

In midfield, there is a spot up for grabs alongside Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes and William Carvalho. Ruben Neves or Otavio are the favourites to play.

Up front, Joao Felix will likely be partnered by Ramos after his hat-trick heroics against the Swiss. 

11:50

Portugal finished top of their group, winning their first two matches - albeit in controversial circumstances after Cristiano Ronaldo dived to win a penalty against Ghana - before losing against South Korea having already qualified.

In the last 16, they cruised past Switzerland 6-1 in a scintillating attacking display which could test Morocco's stern defence to the fullest.

The African side, meanwhile, began with a dour goalless draw against Croatia but recovered to beat the World's No 2 ranked side Belgium and then Canada.

In their first knockout match, they held favourites Spain to a 0-0 draw before triumphing 3-0 on penalty kicks - maintaining a startling record of no opposition player scoring against them so far in 390 minutes in Qatar.

11:33

The game between Portugal and Morocco will be aired live on ITV 1 for UK viewers. If you are looking to stream the game, you need to head to ITV Hub. The game will be free to watch for all UK viewers with a TV License. 

Meanwhile, the following stations will be airing the game for American viewers: FOX Network, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, Telemundo, UFORIA App, Futbol de Primera Radio, SiriusXM FC, Peacock, FOX Sports App, Sling, Foxsports.com.

Australian viewers can tune into the game via SBS, who will be televising every match during the 2022 World Cup. SBS On Demand will also stream the Portugal vs Morocco fixture for those on the move.  

If you're unable to watch the game live, you can relive the action via the FIFA YouTube Channel (Worldwide). The official YouTube channel will be posting highlight reels after each game. 

UK: ITV and ITV Hub.

US: FOX Network, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, Telemundo, UFORIA App, Futbol de Primera Radio, SiriusXM FC, Peacock, FOX Sports App, Sling, Foxsports.com.

Australia: SBS and SBS On Demand.

11:23

The match takes place on Saturday, December 10. It will kick off at 3pm UK time, 10am US time and 2am on Sunday morning Australia time.

The Al Thumama Stadium will play host to the match. It is located 12kilometres south of Qatar's capital city Doha.

The capacity of the ground is 44,400, although that will be halved to 22,200 after the tournament.

It previously staged six group-stage matches, including Spain's 7-0 thrashing of Costa Rica, and France's 4-1 last-16 win against Poland on Sunday.

11:14

11:05

11:02

Later on, Portugal and Morocco face off with a World Cup semi-final spot - against either England or France - on the line.

It promises to be a cracker.