Croatia and Morocco share points in goalless World Cup opener
Flashes of brilliance! Bursts of energy! You’ll find things in other games, and there were a few in this one. But there were no goals, which produced a largely unsatisfying 90 minutes of soccer and a 0-0 draw. There was little to get your heart racing.
Croatia, one of the tournament’s more veteran squads, began the game looking more old than experienced.
They began to wake up in the final minutes of the first half and looked slightly more alive in the second, but none of their chances were particularly frightening, despite holding possession for 65 percent of the time.
Morocco had more danger sparks, but the Croatian goalkeeper had little to fear. Achraf Hakimi uncorked a powerful strike on a free kick, briefly looking like it could be dangerous, but it flew straight to the goalkeeper, and the sheet remained clean.
Group F was already thought to be perhaps the most closed group of the tournament, and the draw brings no further clarity. The other group members, Belgium and Canada, play later Wednesday.
