Doha (dpa)
The Moroccan national football team has proven that it can compete with the major teams in football, after it finished the “Qatar 2022” World Cup, ranking fourth.
The Moroccan national team won fourth place in the World Cup in Qatar, after losing to Croatia 1/2, in the match for third place yesterday evening, Saturday, to become the first Arab and African team in the history of the World Cup to score fourth place.
The Moroccan national team’s march in the tournament was not easy, especially since it was found in a difficult group in the group stage with the national teams of Croatia, Belgium and Canada.
Although all the nominations were pouring into Morocco’s exit from the first round, and the teams of Croatia and Belgium qualified for the round of 16, the Atlas Lions achieved unexpected results by drawing negatively with Croatia in the first match, then beating Belgium in a big surprise with two goals, then beating Canada 2/ 1, to advance the Moroccan national team to the round of 16, leading the group.
Despite leading his group and presenting good matches in the group stage, his exit was expected from the round of 16, especially since he collided with the Spanish national team, which was among the candidates for the title, but the Moroccan national team was his match and was able to end the match with a goalless draw, and pass to the quarter-finals as a winner. 3-0 on penalties.
The situation did not change in the quarter-finals, as many believed that the Moroccan national team would bid farewell to the Portuguese national team, especially since no Arab or African team had passed through this round, but the Moroccan national team violated all expectations and crossed it by winning a goal, to achieve a historic achievement by qualifying for the round before Final.
In the semi-finals, the Moroccan national team faced its French counterpart, the world champion, and was a match for it in the match, but lost in the end with a double, to play in the third place match, which it lost to the Croatian team yesterday.
In view of the impressive results achieved by the Moroccan national team in the tournament, Walid Rekragui, coach of the Moroccan national team, believes that the Atlas Lions have earned their right to be one of the best football teams.
“We faced Croatia twice, one of the three best teams in the world,” Rekragui said. “We played Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium and Canada. This is wonderful.”
He added, “The Moroccan national team has proven that it can be a match for these teams. We are now among the four best teams in the world.”
Regragui also believes that the Moroccan national team can one day win the World Cup title, and stressed: “We have a goal, which is to win the World Cup one day.”
He added: As for the 2026 World Cup, if I were to continue in my position, I would have gained more experience, and perhaps some things would change. And in 2026, we will realize the achievement we achieved in 2022.
The Moroccan national team will turn its attention in the coming period towards the qualifiers for the upcoming African Cup of Nations, “ALCAN”.
The Moroccan national team will seek to prove that it is among the four best teams in the world, by winning the championship title that will be held in January 2024, especially since the Moroccan national team has only won the title once, in 1976.
Regragui believes that the opportunity is now ripe for the current generation to achieve the African title after shining in the World Cup and appearing on the world football map.
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