by Morocco heads to the African Cup of Nations with unprecedented expectations on its shoulders. The tournament, initially scheduled for last summer but postponed by the Confederation of African Football (Caf) due to the rainy season in the host country, Ivory Coast, will be marked by the Atlas Lions who will try to continue a historic World Cup and they add to a legacy that has eclipsed any other African nation.
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Drawn in Group F along with Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia, Morocco is the big favorite for the tournament. In Qatar, they became the first African country to reach the semi-finals of the competition, topping a group that included Belgium, Croatia and Canada before eliminating Spain and Portugal to reach the semi-finals.
By contrast, Morocco has lifted one Afcon trophy, in 1976, in 19 appearances. A disappointing result given that the country has the best football infrastructure on the continent, funded by King Mohammed VI. Unlike many of its African counterparts, the federation is well run and has a wealth of talent playing club football at the highest level in Europe. One final and two semi-finals in almost five decades are poor results for a country that is often considered one of the favourites. In recent editions of the Afcon, worse teams and with many fewer resources have triumphed.
Now the Atlas Lions are not just one of the favorites, but the big favorite. The team set incredibly high standards in Qatar, but will have to fight to change the way they play on the field and the way they think off it when they start their tournament at the Laurent Pokou stadium in San-Pédro.
Since the World Cup, Morocco has had problems. They recorded a huge 2-1 win against Brazil, but a defeat against South Africa and draws against Peru, Cape Verde and Ivory Coast highlighted just how much they will have to change their way of playing. Responding to his team’s form, Morocco coach Walid Regragui said: “We are playing against the best players in the world. “I could also go play against teams that are 50th or 60th in the FIFA rankings and then say that we have been undefeated for many games.”
He was apparently criticizing Algeria and their 35-match unbeaten streak that ended at Afcon 2021. It was a strange comment given that Morocco has also mostly faced teams below 50th in the rankings, including Liberia, who are ranked 153rd. .
Perhaps his critics are right. In Qatar, Morocco was very disciplined and organized defensively. In goal, Bono took advantage of rare chances through the back four of Achraf Hakimi, Nayef Aguerd, Romain Saïss and Noussair Mazraoui. Sofyan Amrabat was Morocco’s hard-working point guard, but at the same time he showed that he was much more than your average destroyer with his progressive passing and running. Azzedine Ounahi was instrumental in moving the ball up the field and his speed, technicality and decision making were crucial in maintaining possession and executing Regragui’s tactic of using the other team’s will to attack to find spaces to exploit.
None of that has changed for Morocco. They still rarely concede goals and can force their way into their opponent’s midfield. It is from the beginning that they have concerns. Hakim Ziyech was in impressive form at the World Cup, but 13 months on, the 30-year-old is struggling for fitness at Galatasaray, having missed 13 games this season with a foot injury and a problem in the hamstring.
Likewise, Sofiane Boufal has only played five games this season after suffering an unknown injury that kept him out of action for Qatari side Al-Rayyan for more than 100 days. The last time he played 90 minutes was in August.
Then there is dear Youssef En-Nesyri. In Qatar, his only goal in the round of 16, a magnificent header against Portugal, secured his team’s place in the semi-finals. However, throughout his career he has been criticized for his inconsistent form and seems to be on one of those bad runs. The forward has not scored for the national team since the World Cup and has five league goals with Sevilla this season.
It would be premature to say that Morocco has been discovered, but they are finding it difficult to go from going toe-to-toe with the world’s heavyweights, who gave them space, to facing teams looking to bring them down to their level. , frustrate them physically and then get a result. This is how Morocco has been eliminated in its last three Afcons, falling apart at crucial moments against teams it should have beaten: a 2-1 loss against Egypt in extra time in 2022, a 4-1 loss in the shootout penalties against Benin in 2019 and a 1-0 defeat against Egypt in 2017.
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It doesn’t help that Regragui doubted the team’s expectations. After the World Cup, he said that Morocco had to win the continental trophy to cement his legacy. Less than a year later, he did a 180-degree turn, suggesting hopes of progressing past the group stage should be tempered. “It will be very difficult for us to win the Afcon,” he said. “We will not be favorites. The last time we got to a semi-final I think I was a player. “I had hair.”
Recently, he has re-accepted being a favorite and expecting players to take it easy. “Being the underdog in the World Cup and the favorite in the Afcon is an advantage. We have acquired a new status not only in Africa but also globally, with a place in the top 15. [in the Fifa rankings]. Players have to adapt to this new status. “It is always nice to be a team that is feared.”
In Qatar, Morocco was an exciting outside team, a team that represented an entire continent and a region of the world that is often underappreciated, in football or otherwise. Now they find themselves among rivals who envy them and will stop at nothing to take their place. It is up to them to prove whether the pressure of building on their World Cup success will propel them forward or prove detrimental. Morocco’s football legacy depends on it.
