Morocco defender kissed Pepe's head when he lost in injury time

Morocco experienced tense injury time, under the pressure of the Portuguese attack. In the first minute of compensation, the African representative escaped defeat when Cristiano Ronaldo entered the penalty area and then shot to the near corner to hit goalkeeper Bono's position. Two minutes later, striker Walid Cheddira fouled Bernardo Silva in the midfield and received a second yellow card, an indirect red card.

In the seventh minute of stoppage time, from the cross on the left, the Moroccan players were busy with Ronaldo and forgot about Pepe. From a distance of 5 m, the 39-year-old midfielder leaned forward to head but missed the post. Howling after escaping the goal, El Yamiq kissed the top of Pepe's head as "thank you" to the opponent.

El Yamiq's spontaneous reaction was immediately noticeable. "Missed opportunity and kiss on Pepe's head is so disrespectful," Twitter account @jets_faithful commented.

"What a great provocation," wrote another user.

Meanwhile, the GiveMeSport site commented: "El Yamiq must thank Pepe's bald head for not turning the opportunity into an equalizer. The Morocco defender kissed the top of Pepe's head to show unbelievable relief."

Morocco beat Portugal thanks to Youssef En-Nesyri's only header at the end of the first half. They thus overcame the quarter-finals of Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, Ghana 2010, becoming the first African representative to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup.

After the match, Pepe and midfielder Bruno Fernandes said that the Argentinian referee team pressed Portugal and paved the way for Lionel Messi and his teammates to win the 2022 World Cup. In addition to the referee Facundo Tello and two assistants and referees. The head of the VAR department is also an Argentinian.

Meanwhile, Sofyan Amrabat insists Morocco deserves to reach the semi-finals. After topping the group with Belgium and Croatia, they beat Spain and Portugal respectively. "That's how we fight and play, with all our heart, for the country and the fans. Really, really, really unbelievable," the 26-year-old midfielder exclaimed.

Morocco will meet the defending champion France in the semi-finals at Al Bayt Stadium, at 2pm on December 15, Hanoi time.