Scotland 0-1 Morocco leaves World Cup hopes on knife edge

Scotland suffered a damaging 1-0 defeat to Morocco in their second match of the 2026 World Cup in Boston, leaving them needing to take something from their final Group C clash with Brazil to stand any chance of reaching the last 32. The Tartan Army were stunned after 70 seconds when Ismael Saibari was played in over the top and thundered an unstoppable strike into the top corner.

Scotland never recovered and failed to muster a shot on target, while Morocco should have doubled their lead when Bilal El Khannouss blazed over. Early in the second period John McGinn had a penalty appeal waved away and VAR backed the decision; Morocco immediately countered and Saibari’s shot deflected onto the crossbar, with Angus Gunn then making a strong save from the resulting corner.

Player ratings reflected a sparse attacking display. Angus Gunn (6) made a couple of big saves and had no chance with the goal, while Jack Hendry (6) was one of the better performers after turning Saibari’s effort onto the bar.

scotland, morocco, ismael saibari, el khannouss, john mcginn, angus gunn, group c, brazil, boston, world cup