After historic performances at 2022 Qatar World Cup, Morocco aims for more success under new coach Mohamed Ouahbi in upcoming tournament.
Morocco produced a historic best performance for an African and Arab nation at the 2022 World Cup, reaching the semi-finals. However, their hopes of another run to the latter stages may have been affected by recent turbulence. The Atlas Lions' remarkable journey saw them eliminate Spain on penalties in the last 16 and knock out Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal in the quarter-finals before falling to France and Croatia.
This time, Morocco is ranked eighth in the world, between the Netherlands and Belgium, showcasing their improved status on the global stage. At home, supporters are eager for more expansive football from the team that relied heavily on a defensive style during the 2022 tournament. Walid Regragui, who masterminded Morocco's run to the semi-finals, left his coaching job in March, six weeks after their Africa Cup of Nations final loss to Senegal.
With home advantage, Morocco were favored to win the Africa Cup but faced criticism from a demanding public and media following Brahim Diaz's missed penalty kick. This led to Senegal players storming off the pitch in protest, resulting in a 1-0 defeat for Morocco. Following this, Mohamed Ouahbi was appointed as the new coach after overseeing Morocco's triumph at the Under-20 World Cup.
Ouahbi and his team, including Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi (the reigning African player of the year), face a challenging group stage with matches against Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti. Moroccan football pundit Oussama Berraoui believes the current team is more experienced and talented than in 2018.
Morocco's transformation into a serious international player has been driven by their youth academy at the Mohammed VI training centre and the influx of talented players born with Moroccan heritage but playing abroad, such as Hakimi, Brahim Diaz, and others. The latest addition to this group is Ayoub Bouaddi, who recently chose to represent Morocco.
In an interview with Moroccan channel Arryadia, Ouahbi expressed optimism: "We can dream" about going all the way in the World Cup. Despite recent drama, Morocco heads to the United States with big ambitions and plans to host the 2030 World Cup final in a new 115,000-seat stadium near Casablanca.
