Qatar 2022: History Beckons as Morocco’s Atlas Lions aim for World Cup holders France scalp

By Harry Awurumibe, Editor-in-Chief,  Abuja

Irrespective of where the pendulum of victory swings to in the second semi final match between Morocco and France at Al Bayt Stadium, Doha  in the on-going FIFA World Cup, Qatar 2022, the Moroccan senior football team has already represented the African continent and Arab world as well as their country and families creditablly in the competition.

Also, should Morocco go ahead to edge France for the final ticket when both semi finalists clash on Wednesday night, it will be an added bonus as the North Africans have achieved many first and have set many records for other African countries to try to equal or surpass in future competitions.

For starters, Morocco has been phenomenal in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as the giant-killers that entered the competition proper as FIFA’s 22nd-ranked team in the world defeated dreaded nations enroute the semifinal.

Morocco beat No. 2-ranked Belgium in the group stage, eliminated No. 7-ranked Spain in the Round of 16 and humbled No.9-ranked Portugal in the quarter final match at the weekend just as she conceded only one goal in five games which happens to be an own-goal against Canada.

Earlier, Morocco had played out a barren draw in the first Group F tie against Croatia, a country that also made it to the semi final stage of the competition but returned to the winning ways by beating Belgium 2-0 and Canada 2-1 respectively. What a journey so far for the Atlas Lion and they seem not to be relenting hence the semi final clash with the FIFA World Cup defending champions France presents yet another blockbuster match.

At this stage, the Moroccans will take no prisoners as they are bent on adding France in the number of conquered nations in this World Cup as both the playing personnel and coaching staff as well as accompanying officials including respected football administrator and President of Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa are poised to cross one more obstacle, France on Wednesday.

Lekjaa, a former President of a Moroccan top club, RSB Berkane before he became his Federation’s President since April 13, 2014, when he succeeded Ali Fassi Fihri and a FIFA Council since March 2021, has revolutionised Moroccan football. The part he played in the success of Atlas Lions will be a topic for another day.

However, under Lekjaa Morroco has reached World Cup Semi-final in 2022, the first by an African country;  Wydad Casablanca of Morroco are CAF Champions League  Champions (2022);  RSB Berkane of Morroco are CAF

 Confederation Cup Champions (2022); ASFAR FC Ladies of Morroco are CAF Women’s Champions League winners (2022) and Atlas Lionesses of Morroco claim WAFCON silver medal and qualify for first ever FIFA Women’s World Cup (2022). This is at a period when over 52 other FA Presidents in Africa did not see their teams claim any major title in the continent.

Thus the success of the Atlas Lions in Qatar 2022 cannot be attributed to mother luck as the country and specifically, Moroccan Football Federation under Lekjaa worked hard for it by sowing the right seeds and adopting three basic development formula of investing massively on facilities, talents discovering and grooming and putting qualified persons incharge of affairs including coaching and administration.

In fact, Morocco has now rewritten Africa’s World Cup history. Although

African teams have claimed several giant-killing results at FIFA World Cup final in the past but nothing like the unprecedented run of Morocco in Qatar 2022 which will fuel hopes of more representation of Africa at future football tournaments.

Morocco’s achievements so far cannot be compared to Cameroon’s upset of Cup holders Argentina in the opening match of the 1990 World Cup in Italy and they later went on to the quarter-finals while Senegal did the same to France when they began the defence of their title in 2002.

The semi final stage cannot be compared to Algeria’s 1-0 defeat of West Germany in 1982 was also one of the tournament’s all-time shock results or Black Stars of Ghana’s quarter-final performance in South Africa 2010.

Since Africa started participating in the FIFA World Cup with Egypt as the first African participants in 1934 under Scottish Head Coach, James McCrae, no African team has won five matches at a stretch as Morocco has done in Qatar. Morocco is yet to taste defeat with the Atlas Lions threatening to devour their next opponents France on Wednesday.

This present generation of Moroccan players may have been aware of what happened to their predecessors in the past as they tried to create their own history.  Morocco was a single African representatives in Mexico 1970 where the country  finished bottom of the group, albeit holding Bulgaria to a draw in their last game.

But years later, Morocco were the first African side to qualify for the second stage of the FIFA World Cup in Mexico 1986 by beating Portugal to finish ahead of England in their group. That trend has continued in Qatar.

However, Morocco’s Class of 2022 have done what Napoleon Bonaparte could not do by thrashing some of the fearsome football countries like Belgium, Spain and Portugal within weeks thus has changed the mood of the entire continent and Arab world and will also be celebrated for years to come for the  achievements so far in Qatar.

There is also rumours that the African continent may be alloted nine places plus a possible extra place via playoffs at the expanded 48-team FIFA World Cup final in 2026 even as there are indications that CAF may make a case for more places for Africa in the light of the performance of Morocco in Qatar.

Meanwhile, Atlas Lions’ Head Coach Walid Regragui with roots in France and his players, Captain fantastic Raimi Saiss; tireless Sofyan Amrabat; ace defender Achraf Hakimi; forward Youssef En-Nesyri and agile goalkeeper Yassine Bounou as well as Chelsea FC midfielder, Hakim Ziyech should know that the whole of African continent and Arab world are behind them to create one more upset by edging France although Les Blues are not going to be easy meat to chew.

 Go Morocco !