Morocco coach Walid Regragui says managing players’ emotions will be key when they take on Spain for place in the World Cup quarter-finals – a match he labelled the “biggest” in the country’s history.
The North Africans face the 2010 champions on Tuesday in the last-16 clash at Education City Stadium as they contest the knockout stage for the first time in 36 years.
One of the real success stories of Qatar 2022, Morocco qualified for the last 16 by topping their group. Unbeaten at the tournament, they defeated Belgium and Canada, while also holding Croatia, the 2018 runners-up, to a draw. The country has never before reached a World Cup quarter-finals.
Speaking at a prematch press conference on Monday, Regragui said: “We haven't been at that level for 36 years, so me and my staff will have to manage the players' emotions.
“It is the biggest game in our history, but I hope the biggest will be the next one [the quarter-finals]. Our elders cannot replay their [1986 last-16] game against West Germany while the Spain game is ahead of us. I will tell the players to enjoy themselves, as millions in Morocco will be watching.
“We have to accept that Spain will have possession. We have our strengths; we abandoned possession to Belgium and Croatia and it worked well. Our plan is that they don't know what to do with the ball.”
In Spain, Morocco go up against a side perhaps with a point to prove. After opening their World Cup campaign with a 7-0 rout of Costa Rica, Luis Enrique’s side drew with Germany and were then beaten by Japan. Thus, they finished second in Group E.
Belgium 0 Morocco 2: player ratings
-
BELGIUM RATINGS: Thibaut Courtois 4 – Was twice undone by free-kicks, firstly from Ziyech and an effort that was later ruled out for offside, then again for the decisive goal at his near post. Could do little about the second. Reuters -
Thomas Meunier 4 – Overlapped well on the right but his final delivery always let him down. Was also guilty of giving needless free-kicks away in his own half. AFP -
Toby Alderweireld 4 – Belgium’s tempo was too slow and that started from the back, with Alderweireld and others taking too many touches and allowing Morocco to recover their shape. He did, though, make a key interception towards the end with Morocco threatening. Getty -
Jan Vertonghen 5 – Won a lot in the air but like Alderweireld, his passing was usually sideways, and slowed things down. He came close with a header in the final ten minutes. Getty -
Timothy Castagne 5 – Looked to get forward when he could, but had his hands full with Ziyech. Getty -
Andre Onana 5 – Had a half chance from a Belgium corner. He beat Munir to the ball but could only head over. Soon after, he picked up a senseless yellow card that will see him miss the game against Croatia. Overall, he didn’t do enough. EPA -
Axel Witsel 5 – Ineffective going forward from the middle, and was guilty of slowing the play down. Did his defensive duties well. Getty -
Thorgan Hazard 6 – His creativity led to the first chance of the game, his angled through ball releasing Batshuayi, who tested Munir. Lively throughout, though unable to really penetrate the opposition. EPA -
Kevin De Bruyne 5 – Yet to hit his stride at this World Cup, he cut a frustrated figure throughout. He came closest with a free-kick in the first half from a tight angle, but his effort landed on the roof of the net. AFP -
Eden Hazard 4 – Dropped deeper and deeper to receive the ball and so didn’t operate in dangerous positions. When he did manage to fashion a shooting opportunity, in the second half, he forced Munir into a save to his left. Ultimately, he was ineffective, and was substituted. PA -
Michy Batshuayi 4 – Had a good early chance and, after timing his run to perfection, forced Munir into a save following good work from Thorgan Hazard. For a target man, though, he didn’t keep the ball enough, and strayed offside too many times. AFP -
SUBS: Youri Tielemans (Onana, 60) 5 – Made a crunching tackle with his first touch to win the ball back in a dangerous area, then anonymous thereafter. AFP -
Dries Merterns (E Hazard, 60) 6 – Created a bit of magic within minutes of coming on; he created a shooting chance from the edge of the area and forced Munir into a save. AP -
Leandro Trossard (T Hazard, 75) N/A – Will no doubt have watched with frustration as both Hazard brothers flattered to deceive. Getty -
Charles de Ketelaere (Batshuayi, 75) N/A – Had little joy, like the player he replaced. AP -
Romelu Lukaku (Meunier, 81) N/A – It says much about Belgium’s performance that Roberto Martinez turned to Lukaku ahead of schedule. He won a corner with his first contribution. Getty -
MOROCCO RATINGS: Munir 7 – A late addition at kick-off, was called into action early on to block smartly from Batshuayi. He looked confident when defending corners, often clearing with a solid punch. Saved well to his right to deny Hazard in the second half. Getty -
Achraf Hakimi 6 – Made a good and dangerous run into the area just after the half hour mark. He looked across and, with few options, he blazed over with a wild effort. Was carrying a knock and looked a little bit off his usual pace. AP -
Nayef Aguerd 7 – Impressive throughout. He was aggressive in his tackling, but also accurate with both his long and short passing. Getty -
Romain Saiss 7 – Strayed offside during Ziyech’s goal-bound free-kick, which obscured Courtois’s view, and led to VAR ruling out the goal. He then did exactly the same when breaking the deadlock, but stayed onside. Kept Batshuayi quiet throughout. Getty -
Noussair Mazraoui 7 – Solid performance from Mazraoui who moved to right-back following Hakimi’s substitution. AFP -
Azzedine Ounahi 7 – A raw performance from the youngster, who worked tirelessly throughout and gave everything to the cause while looking stylish with the ball at his feet. AFP -
Nordin Amrabat 8 – Worked tirelessly at both ends, winning the ball back and then attempting to drive his team forward. Was central to Morocco’s play throughout. EPA -
Selim Amallah 7 – One of four Moroccan players born and raised in Belgium, Amallah worked hard. He had a shooting opportunity in the first half, albeit a difficult one, and hit it high and wide. Was more involved in this match than he was against Croatia, getting a number of successful passes in. EPA -
Hakim Ziyech, 9 – Always looked one of the more dangerous players, and he thought he’d given his side the lead when he converted from a free-kick. However, after a VAR check, Saiss was adjudged to have been offside. Came close again from distance following a progressive move from Morocco, but his effort drifted over the bar. Cut the ball back for Aboukhal to put the game beyond doubt. EPA -
Youssef En-Nesyri 6 – Arguably the weak link in Morocco’s attack, and who didn’t offer as much as a threat as those playing behind him. AFP -
Sofiane Boufal 7 – While a lot of Morocco’s play came from the other side of the pitch, Boufal had one of the best chances of the game when, after dropping his shoulder, he lost Meunier and sent a low effort just wide of Courtois’s post. Always a threat. EPA -
SUBS: Yahya Attiat-Allah (Amallah, 68) 7 – Made an instant impact, winning the free-kick that led to the opening goal. Getty -
Abdelhamid Sabiri (Hakimi, 68) 8 – A stunning free-kick, a wicked delivery that caught out Courtois at his near post, put Morocco ahead. Reuters -
Zakaria Aboukhlal (Boufal, 73) N/A – Scored the decisive second following a neat cut back from Ziyech, an unstoppable finish into the top corner. Getty -
Abderazak Hamdallah (En-Nesyri, 73) N/A – Made a dangerous break in the closing stages and held the ball up well before forcing a corner. Getty -
Jawad El Yamiq (Ounahi, 78) N/A – Made his World Cup debut and did little wrong in his 15-minute cameo. AP
“It's going to be a very difficult game against one of the best teams in the world,” Regragui said. "They're among the top favourites. However, we have our own qualities, and we've had an extra day of recuperation. If we can knock them out, it will be a big surprise.
“I told the players before the World Cup: we're playing only finals here. We've played three finals in the group phase and now it's our fourth final.”
Morocco and Spain met in the group stage in Russia four years ago, playing out at 2-2 draw. Predictably, Regragui said that match would have little bearing on Tuesday, preferring instead to concentrate on the finer details that could have an impact.
Regragui, a former right back, took charge of his national team in September and has since made them defensively sound: Morocco have conceded once in his six games.
“I loved our second half against Canada, when we stuck to our plan and were extremely concentrated,” he said. “Against Spain, we'll have to play the whole game like this.”
