
When referee Facundo Tello blew the final whistle in the World Cup quarter- final clash between Portugal and Morocco, the dream that many thought could not happen in our lifetime finally came to pass. The Atlas Lions of Morocco became the first African side to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup, winning the game 1-0 thanks to Sevilla striker Youssef En-Nesyri, who headed the ball home three minutes before halftime. Morocco held their own against the Portuguese, even going a man down in the final minutes when Walid Cheddira received his marching order with a second yellow card for a reckless challenge. It was a nerve-wracking final few minutes for Morocco as the history weighed on their shoulders. This was the fourth time an African country had reached the quarters and progression meant this was the first time an African nation had reached the semi-finals of the World Cup. Morocco, having topped their group that contained the beaten finalist in 2018 Croatia and the number one ranked side Belgium, followed up with beating Spain on penalties in the round of 16- this was already enough for their tournament to be crowned a massive success. Given their struggles during the game, and Portugal’s wealth of attacking options off the bench (including the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Joao Cancelo and Rafael Leao), Morocco held firm against the Portuguese, seized their opportunity with the goal and managed to hold on until the very end to achieve this remarkable feat.

Before the tournament, eyebrows were raised regarding the Atlas Lions. Despite qualifying comfortably for Qatar, they sacked their former Vahid Halihodzic just three months ago and appointed young Walid Regragui. Halihodzic also had a falling out with Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech, leading to his retirement from the national team earlier in the year. Morocco’s poor performance in the past African Cup of Nations proved to be the final straw and Halihodzic’s dismissal followed swiftly afterwards. The decision to bring back Ziyech was a bold move but has richly paid off, with the mercurial winger being at the heart of Morocco’s miraculous run. Morocco’s history also reflects Africa’s story in the World Cup. Talented but often disappointed. They have only made it to the knockout stages once in 1986 and they, like the other African nations in 2018, failed to make the knockout stages. Albeit they were placed in a competitive group in 2018 that contained both 2010 World Cup champions Spain and Euro 2016 champions Portugal.
Having the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Archaf Hakimi, Noussair Mazraoui, Romain Saiss, Sofyan Amrabat, Yassine Bounou and Youssef En-Nesyri, the Atlas Lions (on paper) had the means to achieve success but Walid Regragui’s tactical set-up has elevated Morocco’s performances greatly. According to FBref.com, Morocco has the best defence of all the teams in the tournament, with only one goal conceded in 5 games. The underlying numbers are impressive, they have conceded only eight shots, with a save percentage of 87.5%. The Atlas Lions have made the second-most tackles of the tournament with 104, and the most clearances with 144. This is to the credit of Morocco’s defence and midfield mopping up balls and keeping their discipline in games. Archaf Hakimi has been known as a marauding full-back but has been a defensive rock, making the most tackles and interceptions (26), the second in the squad being Sofyan Amrabat (19). Despite having the second-lowest average possession of all the 32 teams represented with just 32.4%, they create havoc on the counter by utilizing the speed and dribbling ability of Boufal and Ziyech, with Boufal having the fourth most successful dribbles (12). Walid Regragui understood the strength of his squad, utilizing possession when they have it and being disciplined in the midfield and defensive end, yielding stunning results in the process.

Though this is a remarkable run, the nation’s apparent success did not happen by accident. According to sports journalist Adepoju Tobi Samuel, the Moroccan FA have built and worked on this project since 2014, when President Fouzi Lekjaa took charge. They made a $70 million investment with the construction of the ‘Mohammed VI Football Complex’ as a step towards improving the football infrastructure for both men and women football. Thus far the project has yielded success at club level, with Morocco currently having both the CAF Champions League & Confederation Cup titles in Wydad AC and RS Berkane. Moreover, the Morocco Women’s National Team made it to the final of the 2022 CAF Women’s African Cup of Nations, and qualified for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history. The investment contributed to better coaching and coaches in Morocco, reflecting on their decision by bringing in Walid Regragui, who himself has won the CAF Champions League and the Morocco Pro League. Another factor is utilizing the diaspora. A handful of players representing the national team were actually born outside of Morocco: Hakimi, Amrabat, Ziyech and Bounou to mention a few. Despite being born elsewhere and having the chance to play for the countries of their birth, deciding to play for Morocco was not only an easier pathway competitively, but also attractive as it presented a sense of belonging for these players to represent their ‘motherland’.

Having achieved what Cameroon, Senegal and Ghana failed to do, Morocco will be the story of this World Cup- irrespective of whether they reach the final or not. The support gained both in Qatar (a fellow Arab nation), from home and all around the world highlights why the World Cup is special and now Africa finally has its moment. Morocco has inspired everyone in the African continent that the dream is still possible, despite the disadvantages Africa continues to go through in the sport, from players of origin opting to play elsewhere, exploitation of young players and lack of football infrastructure. Having toiled this far, they have France in the last four and the crowd in the Al Bayt stadium will be littered with red jerseys. The cities of Rabat and Casablanca will be at a stand- still to see if the team can give this fairytale story a further chapter. Regardless of the outcome, Morocco has captured our hearts and this squad will be remembered for decades.


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