Morocco are a tough team to judge. They were relatively untested in qualification, and their coach was only appointed in August. On the other hand, they have Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech and talent from Ligue 1. Will that be enough to finish above Croatia or Belgium?
The manager
Walid Regragui is the prototype of the new coaching blueprint in African football. Instead of the same old tired candidates off the European coaching carousel, many African nations are trusting former internationals to coach their national teams.
Senegal kicked off the trend with Aliou Cisse, and Algeria followed with great success with Djamel Belmadi. Mali have recently hired Eric Chelle. Guinea have brought on Kaba Diawara. Tunisia’s Radhi Jaidi and South Africa’s Benni McCarthy, both in club football, are surely next.
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After amassing 45 caps for Morocco as a rugged right-back in the early 2000s, Regragui embarked on a coaching career in Morocco. After a short-lived big-money move to Qatari club Al-Duhail, Regragui returned to Morocco to guide Casablanca side Wydad to a historic treble, winning the Botola league, Throne Cup and CAF Champions League.
Read more: Croatia beat Morocco 2-1 to take 3rd place at the 2022 World Cup
Meanwhile, supporters’ patience ran thin with national team coach Vahid Halilhodzic and his brand of football, as he fell out with Hakim Ziyech, Noussair Mazraoui and Amine Harit. Regragui became a unanimous choice to replace the Bosnian coach and has been a popular replacement so far.
The household name you haven’t heard of yet
Keep an eye out on Morocco’s wiry No 8 in midfield: Azzedine Ounahi — the 22-year-old is the potential breakout player for the North Africans. He hails from the state-of-the-art Academie Mohamed VI in Sale, Morocco, as do several of his national team-mates including Youssef En-Nesyri, Nayef Aguerd and Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti.
In the pre-World Cup tranche of the club season, the Angers forward has only trailed Lionel Messi in completed dribbles per game in Ligue 1. He is the ideal press-resistant ball-carrier in midfield and can carry the ball into the final third of the pitch. Without setting the bar too high, you could almost say that Ounahi is Morocco’s answer to Croatia’s Luka Modric and Belgium’s Youri Tielemans in Group F.
Strengths
In attacking midfield, Morocco boast some of the most accomplished dribblers at the World Cup. Ounahi (2.8) and Sofiane Boufal (2.5) are the 2nd and 4th best dribblers in Ligue 1. Marseille’s Amine Harit is slippery and gets past defenders often and with ease. Ez Abde and Munir are two La Masia products that can bring pace and dribbling ability off the bench.
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Morocco’s dribbling maestros are not goalscorers though and that is why Regragui will centralise attacking efforts around Ziyech. Although he has failed to make his mark on the Premier League, there is no doubting Ziyech’s world-class quality when making a key pass in the final third.
Weaknesses
There are two major questions surrounding the Atlas Lions. Despite all of the technical quality in attacking midfield, the North Africans have struggled in front of goal. Youssef En-Nesyri blows hot and cold, and this season at Sevilla, it’s been almost freezing. Ayoub El Kaabi has had similar bouts of form, and there are still doubts about him as a complete striker.
There is a good chance Morocco will need to find goals from elsewhere. In addition to those goalscoring qualms, critics of this national team will wonder if the coaching staff turnaround is too tight for Regragui’s team to properly blood their ideas. The coach was appointed on August 31, leaving him just two international windows with his players.
Local knowledge
As Morocco go forward on the counter-attack, you’ll hear their supporters scream: “SEEERRRR”. The word means “go” in Moroccan Darija, and it is heavily used in the stands.
The regal aspects of the Kingdom of Morocco should also be on display. You may catch portraits of King Mohammed VI among supporters draped in royal red, chanting their slogan which punctuates the national anthem: “God! The Homeland! The King!”
Another thing to know about Morocco at the World Cup is they have the ability to play up to their competition. They have held their own against West Germany, Spain, England and Portugal before, so they will not be fazed by the traditional favourites.
Expectations back home
There is a lot of uncertainty. There is no denying the quality of the players, and the general public has a lot of admiration and trust in Regragui. Over the last World Cup cycle, the team has won the overwhelming majority of their matches.
Yet on the big occasions, whether it was the 2018 World Cup, or the 2019 or 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco have fallen short and this team was not tested too heavily on the road to Qatar.
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While the bookies will probably predict a group stage exit for Ziyech and co, a run into the final 16 would not surprise anyone in Morocco.
Read more: See the rest of The Athletic’s World Cup 2022 squad guides
Read more: Morocco stuns Belgium 2-0 to move to the top of Group F
(Main graphic — photo: Getty Images/design: Sam Richardson)