After an opening-night upset and some unexpectedly close games so far in the Women’s World Cup, there was an open, albeit optimistic question as to whether Morocco could give Germany a scare. But it was evident from the first whistle that Morocco were not going to be able to keep a clean sheet for long and after a slower first half, the Euro 2022 runners-up brushed the debutants aside with an emphatic 6-0 victory in the Group H opener.
The divide between the world No 2 and No 72 was just too big and it took 11 minutes for Germany’s captain, Alexandra Popp, to find the back of the net, heading in Kathrin Hendrich’s cross from the left. Morocco’s goalkeeper Khadija Er-Rmichi and a defender came out to meet the ball but both misjudged it, leaving Popp with an open goal.
