Morocco’s third goalkeeper stars in shootout to secure a spot in the Under-20 World Cup final

Morocco players lift their coach Mohamed Ouahbi in celebration after defeating France in a penalty shootout during a FIFA U-20 World Cup semifinal at Elias Figueroa Brander Stadium in Valparaiso, Chile, on Oct. 15, 2025. (AP)
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Updated 16 October 2025
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Morocco’s third goalkeeper stars in shootout to secure a spot in the Under-20 World Cup final

  • The Moroccans will play for the championship against Argentina, who edged Colombia 1-0 to reach their eighth final at the under-20 tournament
  • El Mesbahi, who hadn’t played in any of Morocco’s previous matches at the tournament, stopped France´s last shot from Djylian Nguessan

SANTIAGO, Chile: Third goalkeeper Abdelhakim El Mesbahi came off the bench near the end of extra time and made the decisive save in the shootout as Morocco edged France 5-4 on penalties Wednesday to qualify for their first Under-20 World Cup final.

The Moroccans will play for the championship against Argentina, who edged Colombia 1-0 to reach their eighth final at the under-20 tournament.

French goalkeeper Lisandru Olmeta’s own goal in the 32nd minute gave Morocco the lead before midfielder Lucas Michal equalized in the 59th.

It was tied 1-1 in regulation and near the end of extra time, when Morocco’s coach Mohamed Ouahbi sent in El Mesbahi for the shootout.

El Mesbahi had headshots of France’s players printed on his water bottle and a small graphic of where they might direct their penalty kicks.

The strategy worked because El Mesbahi, who hadn’t played in any of Morocco’s previous matches at the tournament, stopped France´s last shot from Djylian Nguessan.

“We managed to stay focused, calm and wait for our moments,” Ouahbi said. “Now we’re enjoying it, we’re in the final. I’m quite emotional because it’s a historic moment, but we want to win the final. We’re going to calm down quickly because what we want is to win the cup.”

Morocco’s starting goalkeeper Yanis Benchaouch was injured during regulation time and replaced by Ibrahim Gomis in the 64th minute. Gomis made way for El Mesbahi at the end of overtime.

Morocco topped their group, beating Spain and Brazil in the process, and then beat South Korea and the US to reach the semifinals.

The African nation’s best previous performance in the tournament was fourth place in 2005.

Argentina edge Colombia

In the later semifinal match, Mateo Silvetti scored in the 72nd minute for Argentina, who have won all of their matches in Chile and are aiming for a seventh Under-20 world title.

The Argentina squad is dominating in Chile despite missing Bayer Leverkusen’s Claudio Echeverri and Real Madrid’s Franco Mastantuono, two of the country’s best under-20s players.
 


Liverpool rocked by last-gasp defeat at Wolves

Updated 04 March 2026
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Liverpool rocked by last-gasp defeat at Wolves

  • Liverpool’s first defeat in five games in all competitions will raise fresh questions about Slot’s Anfield future

LONDON: Liverpool suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolves as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the Premier League’s bottom club on Tuesday.
Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux.
Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November.
But Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool.
It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017.
Liverpool have conceded 14 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half, with only Newcastle shipping more in the same period in the Premier League.
The Reds remain fifth but their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League have been hurt by a defeat that means sixth-placed Chelsea will go above them if they beat Aston Villa on Wednesday.
Liverpool’s first defeat in five games in all competitions will raise fresh questions about Slot’s Anfield future.
This was the first of Liverpool’s two trips to Molineux in the space of four days, with an immediate chance for revenge in the FA Cup fifth round on Friday.
Slot this week said he no longer finds Premier League matches a “joy to watch” due to the rise in set-piece goals, and Liverpool supporters took no pleasure from this dismal performance.
Wolves and Liverpool fans joined in a sustained round of applause on 18 minutes in memory of Diogo Jota, who wore that shirt number during his time at Molineux before joining the Reds.
Portugal forward Jota died in a car crash in Spain last year.

Crest-fallen Slot

That emotional tribute seemed to suck the energy from both teams in a scrappy first half.
Liverpool were punished for their lethargy in the 78th minute.
Tolu Arokodare got away with a nudge on Virgil van Dijk to win the ball before playing a superb pass to Rodrigo Gomes, who held off Ibrahima Konate and guided a clinical finish past Alisson Becker.
Liverpool finally awoke from their slumber after that shock, grabbing an equalizer in the 83rd minute with a helping hand from Wolves.
Wolves midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde was guilty of a woeful pass that Salah intercepted, racing into the area for a shot that eluded Jose Sa’s weak attempted save.
Salah has scored just eight goals — five in the league — during a turbulent season.
Liverpool were still creaky at the back and Andre pounced on Alisson’s poor clearance four minutes to steal the points in stoppage-time.
Andre’s powerful strike deflected off Liverpool defender Joe Gomez and looped over the wrong-footed Alisson as Wolves boss Rob Edwards sprinted down the touchline in a wild celebration while Slot looked on crestfallen.
Wolves are 11 points from safety with eight games left and relegation remains almost certain despite this memorable victory.
Everton ended their dismal home form and pushed Burnley closer to relegation with a 2-0 win at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Buoyed by their 3-2 win at Newcastle last weekend, Everton dispatched second-bottom Burnley with their first win in eight home league matches.
Former Burnley defender James Tarkowski put Everton in front with a powerful header from James Garner’s 32nd minute free-kick.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall doubled Everton’s advantage on the hour taking Iliman Ndiaye’s pass and clipping a composed finish past Martin Dubravka from six yards.
Everton remain in contention for a European berth, while Burnley are eight points from safety with just nine games left.
Habib Diarra’s penalty fired Sunderland to a 1-0 victory against Leeds on their first Premier League visit to Elland Road since 2002.
Bournemouth and Brentford shared a goalless draw at the Vitality Stadium that did little to improve either side’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.