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Canada coach Jesse Marsch insists his side will stay true to their identity when they face Morocco in the FIFA World Cup round of 16, while aiming to make life as difficult as possible for the tournament favourites.
The two nations meet at Houston Stadium in Texas, with Morocco carrying the tag of favourites after their impressive rise on the world stage.
Marsch said Canada respect the Atlas Lions but will not abandon their principles in pursuit of a place in the quarter-finals.
"Steve Nash sent us a message a few days ago saying, the balance between tension and freedom, and what he meant by that was we played disciplined and were organised, but it's also important for us to show our quality and enjoy the game. The further you go in the World Cup, you have to stay even more organised but we have to go for it."
The Canada mentor added that he was wary of Morocco’s explosive starts to previous matches at the World Cup so far.
March believes there’s some lessons learnt from the last time Canada faced Morocco at the 2022 showpiece in Qatar.
"We have addressed what we thought was dangerous and effective in that match, so there's something to be learned, although the key is to understand what Morocco is right now and what we want to be."
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