Morocco and their fervent fans out to spring surprise on Spain in World Cup 'local derby'

Atlas Lions are confident they can continue their momentum to pull off last-16 upset

Morocco's players attend a training session at the Al Duhail SC Stadium in Doha on December 5, 2022, on the eve of the Qatar 2022 World Cup Round of 16 football match between Morocco and Spain. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)

Morocco coach Walid Regragui during training. Reuters

Morocco's Youssef En-Nesyri, second left, attends a training session. AFP

Morocco coach Walid Regragui during training. Reuters

Morocco's Jawad El Yamiq during training. Reuters

Morocco's Romain Saiss and teammates during training. Reuters

Morocco forward Abderrazak Hamdallah trains. AFP

Morocco goalkeeper Ahmed Tagnaouti, second right, and Achraf Hakimi, right, at training. AFP

Morocco's players attend a training session at the Al Duhail SC Stadium in Doha. AFP

Bono, the Morocco goalkeeper, described Tuesday's collision with Spain for a place in the last eight of the World Cup as “just like a derby”.

And Bono, real name Yassine Bounou, knows derbies. His adopted hometown, Seville, is home of one of football’s noisiest, most fiery local grudges, the Andalusian rivalry between his Sevilla and city rivals Real Betis.

Spain and Morocco, nations separated by a short stretch of water, and in some places simply by a high, fortified fence, anticipate today’s contest sounding like a neighbourhood derby but one in which one team are playing at home, for all the distance of the Education City stadium in Doha from Madrid or Rabat.

Five thousand extra tickets for Morocco fans, who have travelled in numbers to Qatar, have been released. With local Gulf support likely to sway in favour of the Atlas Lions, Spain fans may be outshouted by as much as eight voices to each one of theirs in the grandstands.

The neighbourliness will be felt vividly on the pitch and the touchline. The distance from Andalucia’s southern tip to Morocco’s northernmost harbour is barely 10 kilometres at the narrowest point of the Strait of Gibraltar while for the family of Walid Regragui, the coach plotting to take Morocco into the quarter-finals for a World Cup for the first time in their history, the Spanish frontier is merely a drive away.

Regragui, though born in France, grew up regarding his parents’ native Fnideq as his other home. It is very close to the enclave of Ceuta, one of two coastal territories on the African mainland governed by Spain.

Regragui played professionally in Spain’s Liga, with top-division Racing Santander in the mid 2000s, an experience that engendered a respect for what he regards as a distinct, faithful football style.

“I love that country’s football culture,” Regragui told reporters on Monday. “It’s been the same for 20 years and it’s brought great dividends. But we are also developing our game, and we’ll have to adapt our qualities to make problems for Spain.”

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

The template for that is easily available. Spain, who have lost and drawn since they opened their World Cup with a 7-0 thumping of Costa Rica, were nervously on the brink of elimination, for a few minutes, as they let go a lead and lost to a lively, hard-pressing Japan in their last group match.

They were also nervous of the same abrupt end to their campaign when, in the last minutes of the first phase of the 2018 World Cup, they were 2-1 down to Morocco, salvaging a draw with a stoppage-time, VAR-scrutinised equaliser.

Morocco’s second goal that night came from Youssef En-Nesyri, the striker who, with Bono, has since made Sevilla – Europa League winners in 2020, contenders until the penultimate match day for the 2021 Liga title – flag-bearers in European club football for Moroccan excellence.

As has Achraf Hakimi, the Moroccan footballer Spain wish they had persuaded to pursue a career under its flag. Hakimi, whose meteoric rise has, at the age of 24, already earned him trophies with Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Internazionale and Paris Saint-Germain, was born in Madrid, but resisted overtures from the nation of his birth, choosing to represent the country of his heritage.

A broad consensus has Hakimi as the best attacking right-back in the game, and his flank is a productive avenue for Regragui’s enterprising team, one made more potent since the head coach, only appointed in August, recalled Hakim Ziyech, of Chelsea, from his international exile following Ziyech’s falling-out with previous coach Vahid Halilihodzic.

A Ziyech pass, from the right wing, set up the second goal of the 2-0 defeat of Belgium that hoisted Morocco towards the top of their group. Ziyech then capitalised on En-Nesyri’s quick-witted pressing to give Morocco their early lead against Canada, En-Nesyri rifling home, from a Hakimi pass, the second in a 2-1 win.

Japan 2 Spain 1 - in pictures

Ao Tanaka celebrates scoring Japan's second goal in the 2-1 Group E win against Spain at Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, on December 1, 2022. Reuters

Japan players celebrate reaching the last 16. Getty

Japan's Ao Tanaka celebrates the end of the match. Getty

Japan's Hidemasa Morita celebrates with teammates at the final whistle. PA

Ao Tanaka scores Japan's second goal. PA

Ao Tanaka celebrates with the Japan squad after scoring. Getty

Ao Tanaka celebrates after scoring. Getty

Japan celebrate after Ritsu Doan levelled the scores at 1-1. AP

Ritsu Doan, left, celebrates with teammate Kaoru Mitoma. AP

Japan's Ritsu Doan celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates. Reuters

Alvaro Morata celebrates after putting Spain ahead. PA

Alvaro Morata celebrates after scoring. EPA

Alvaro Morata after putting Spain in front. AFP

Spain forward Alvaro Morata after scoring. AFP

Two wins on the trot: form and momentum are with Regragui’s men against a Spain whose head coach Luis Enrique turned irritable as he faced the media yesterday.

The loss to Japan, after a lead conceded in the draw against Germany, “represented just 10 minutes where we played badly in the 270 we have played so far,” he insisted of a campaign that has gone from a festival of fine finishing against Costa Rica to a steadily diminishing ratio of possession – the basis of Spain’s pass-and-move gameplan – to goals.

“The idea is always to dominate the ball,” said Luis Enrique. “And I stick by that idea. Spain will take risks, while others protect themselves and then attack at the end of games.”

It’s the same Spanish football culture Regragui had earlier been praising. It’s an approach that Morocco, at their confident best, with the loud backing of a partisan crowd, have the tools to overcome.