Saudi Arabia Aims to Secure Top Spot in Arab Cup, Morocco Eyes Qualification

Saudi Arabia aims to secure their third straight win and lock up first place in Group 2 when they face Morocco today at Lusail Stadium in Doha. The Saudis have already qualified for the quarterfinals, while Morocco needs at least a point to join them. In the other group match, Oman still holds slim hopes against already-eliminated Comoros.

The Saudi team wrapped up their quarterfinal spot after beating Oman 2-1 and Comoros 3-1 in their opening matches. Now they want to finish top of the group in what will be their tenth meeting with Morocco. Historically, Morocco has the edge with four wins compared to Saudi Arabia's three victories and two draws in their nine previous encounters.

Saudi Arabia played their last match under French assistant coach François Rodriguez, as head coach Hervé Renard was attending the 2026 World Cup draw in the United States. With qualification already secured, the Saudis are expected to rest several key players ahead of the knockout rounds.

This marks Saudi Arabia's sixth qualification from the group stage in seven Arab Cup appearances. They only failed to advance once, in the previous edition also held in Qatar.

Morocco enters the match after a goalless draw with Oman and will be missing striker Abderrazak Hamdallah, who received a red card in that game. A draw would be enough for Morocco to qualify at Oman's expense.

Oman faces the toughest path to advancement. They need to beat Comoros by more than two goals while hoping Morocco loses to Saudi Arabia. Even then, goal difference could still work against them.

For Comoros, the match carries little weight beyond pride. They were eliminated after losing their first two games but can still end the tournament on a positive note.

The group stage concludes with both matches kicking off simultaneously, setting up a potentially dramatic finish to determine which teams join Saudi Arabia in the quarterfinals.