Spain battles Morocco in a semifinal Monday at Orange Vélodrome in Marseille, France. Kickoff is set for noon p.m. ET (Peacock, E!, Telemundo). Below, we preview FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Morocco vs. Spain odds, and make our expert Summer Olympic picks and predictions.
Morocco had the most impressive quarterfinal showing, throttling the USMNT 4-0 Friday. Morocco had 7 more shots on frame (8-1) and 6 more total shots (15-9), while owning 53.2% of the possession. Morocco had an impressive group stage as well, beating Iraq 3-0 and Argentina 2-1 while losing to Ukraine 2-1. Arguably the nation’s best player, D Achraf Hakimi, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain, will be taking the pitch after scoring in the quarterfinal.
Spain had an impressive quarterfinal showing as well, dominating Japan in all aspects of a 3-0 victory. Spain had 4 more shots on goal (6-2) and 3 more shots (12-9) while securing 61.3% of the possession. Spain beat Uzbekistan 2-1 in its first Olympic match then beat the Dominican Republic 3-1 before losing its final group stage game 2-1 to Egypt, which is also in the semifinals.
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Morocco vs. Spain odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at Sunday 5:08 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Morocco +240 (bet $100 to win $240) | Spain +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Draw +240
- Over/Under: 2.5 (O: +105 | U: -129)
Morocco vs. Spain picks and predictions
Prediction
Morocco 1, Spain 1
Moneyline (ML)
TAKE DRAW (+240).
Spain is impressive technically, but that hasn’t consistently produced results. The Spaniards are the favorites here after their strong performance against Japan. However, against Egypt in that final group stage match, it had 4 fewer shots and 4 fewer attempts despite 61.6% possession.
Morocco has an experienced captain leading the way in Hakimi. It has won its last 2 Games by an impressive, combined score of 7-0 while also taking down Argentina 2-1, another team that made the quarterfinal. Given its recent dominance, expect Morocco to keep this one close.
BACK DRAW (+240).
Over/Under (O/U)
BET UNDER 2.5 (-129).
While both teams have produced goals, knockout stage matches typically result in more focused play and fewer goals. Morocco hasn’t allowed a goal in its last 2 matches, while Spain shut out Japan.
In the 2020 Summer Olympics, there was 1 goal in both semifinal matches combined and even that was in extra time. Given the way both defenses played in the quarterfinal round and the historic lack of goals in high-stakes matches, TAKE UNDER 2.5 (-129).
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More USA TODAY Summer Olympics coverage:
News | Medal count | Meet Team USA
