Walid Regragui was proud despite the defeat – how could he not be?
His Morocco side were for once out for the count, the majority crumpled on the Al Bayt Stadium pitch, their World Cup final dream, the most unlikely of dreams at the onset of Qatar 2022, not to be realised.
France were the victors, the current holders holding off Morocco’s steady barrage, when they were pinned back but ultimately not pegged back.
France won through with two goals, but with 36 per cent possession; the latter-stage experts conceding to the African trailblazers, to their terrific technical play and their sheer bloody will. For Morocco, though, it wasn’t to be.
It felt just a match too much, the injuries piling up, the previous three weeks’ exertions finally taking their toll. The penalty shoot-out victory against Spain ensured a first Arab quarter-finalist on football’s grandest stage; the 1-0 triumph against Portugal granting Africa its only ever representative in the last four.
“At a World Cup this was perhaps one step too far,” Regragui admitted himself on Wednesday, the 2-0 semi-final loss still stinging. “Not in terms of quality or tactics, but physically we came up short tonight.
“We had too many players at 60 per cent or 70 per cent. With all our squad fit, we could have caused them a lot of problems.”
And that was just it. Nayef Aguerd was removed from the starting line-up minutes before kick-off because of illness; from 20 minutes in, injury deprived the team of their captain and rock Romain Saiss.
France 2 Morocco 0: Player ratings
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FRANCE RATINGS: Hugo Lloris - 8. Saved El Yamiq’s free-kick on 44, stopped Morocco going level. Assured at corners and behind a side missing key players, yet still winning when it matters. Getty -
Theo Hernandez - 9. Put France ahead inside five minutes, waiting for a ball to drop and taking advantage of poor defending. Got into trouble in his own area after 26, winning the ball yet seeing Morocco appeals for a penalty after he followed through. Key challenges to the end. AP -
Ibrahima Konate - 8. In for Obamekami, stretched to make a fine tackle on Hakimi after 41 under a period of Morocco pressure after a very entertaining first half. Blocked a Hakimi shot at the start of the second half. And again as Morocco got behind the France defence. AFP -
Raphael Varane - 8. Distraught when injured at Chelsea in October, a World Cup finalist in December. Near post run saw him shoot wide on 40. AFP -
Jules Kounde - 8. Right back - rather than preferred central role. Performed well. France had won one of six matches coming into the World Cup finals, but they have a chance to retain the title if they win Sunday’s final. Blocked a 93rd minute effort on the line. AP -
Youssouf Fofana - 8. In for Rabiot and performed well. Involved in the build up for the second in front of the 68,294 crowd. PA -
Aurelien Tchouameni - 8. So impressive striding forward, so impressive defending too. All action and more touches than any player on the field. You can see why Real Madrid paid so much for him. AFP -
Ousmane Dembele - 8. Showed his pace in the moments when France attacked. Excellent skill before setting up the second. Getty -
Antoine Griezmann - 9. Always asked for the ball and made runs behind defenders. Wonderful movement as he looked for pockets of opportunities in the space where it can hurt. Defended well, too. Excellent. AP -
Kylian Mbappe - 8. Came close to making it two, then set up the second. Late nutmeg on Amrabat, one of best players in the tournament. Getty -
Olivier Giroud - 8. Took a shot which came out and ultimately led to the first goal. Smashed the post with a shot on 16. Went off – was pushed off by a frustrated Morocco player. Getty -
SUBS: Marcus Thuram - 7. On for Giroud after 65. Like his father, he could be winning the World Cup. EPA -
Randal Kolo Muani - 7. On for Dembele after 78 for just a fourth cap - he played up front in the defeat to Tunisia. He had been on the pitch for seconds and tapped in France’s second to put the game beyond a fine Morocco team. AP -
MOROCCO RATINGS: Yassine Bounou - 6. There was nothing he could have done for either of the goals. Took a blow from Mbappe when collecting Griezmann’s ball through and was confident with the ball at his feet. EPA -
Achraf Hakimi - 7. Was unlucky to see Hernandez score after blocking Mbappe’s shot. Provided a real threat in forward areas, coming close to keeping the ball when he turned in France’s box. Struggled defensively at times in the second period but made a great late recovery to deny Mbappe. Getty -
Achraf Dari - 6. After coming in as a last-minute replacement for Nayef Aguerd, he was unable to keep out Hernandez’s effort after getting back onto the goal line. Made some strong tackles on Mbappe but also dived in too quickly at times. AP -
Romain Saiss - 5. Tried to play through the pain barrier but simply couldn’t, as was made clear when he misjudged the bounce from a long ball forward to allow Giroud to get in behind before going off. Getty -
Jawad El Yamiq - 5. Gambled on winning the ball ahead of Griezmann and paid the price as France scored the opener, then lost possession cheaply in the build-up to the second. He also had good moments as he cleared an Mbappe shot and was unlucky not to score with an overhead kick. AP -
Noussair Mazraoui - 6. Carelessly allowed himself to roam offside to bring a brilliant Moroccan move to a disappointing end and didn’t look completely fit, but he still defended well against Dembele. AP -
Hakim Ziyech - 6. Had a slow start with a wasteful shot, but his influence grew as the first half progressed, with some of his set-piece deliveries causing problems for France. Linked up beautifully with Hakimi at times and tried to make things happen until the end. AFP -
Azzedine Ounahi - 8. Forced Lloris into a good save with a curling shot from range and continued to impress. His deflected shot fell to Hamdallah. Also positioned himself well to regain possession at times. AFP -
Sofyan Amrabat - 8. Provided an all-action performance from the first whistle to the last, while he also played some brilliant passes to spread the play for Morocco. Made an outstanding tackle on Mbappe after it looked like he’d been beaten. Getty -
Sofiane Boufal - 7. Was very confident on the ball under pressure, turning to get away from Tchouameni and slipping the ball through for Ziyech’s chance. Booked for a challenge on Hernandez in the opposition box. Came close to finding En Nesyri with his cross. EPA -
Youssef En Nesyri - 6. Had a frustrating game where chances didn’t quite fall for him despite intelligent runs and impressive pass attempts. An example came when he couldn’t quite reach Boufal’s cross. EPA -
SUBS: Selim Amallah (Saiss, 21’) - 7. Looked bright off the bench and had some massive nearly moments in the first half, with a searching pass coming close to reaching En Nesyri before he was inches away from reaching Ziyech’s free-kick. Did brilliantly to halt Dembele’s run forward. AP -
Yahia Attiyat Allah (Mazraoui, HT) - 6. Hit a wild shot when the ball awkwardly fell to him in the box, but he then got behind Kounde and forced Konate into an impressive intervention. Reuters -
Abderrazak Hamdallah (En Nesyri, 66’) - 5. Tried to do too much when there was an opportunity to shoot after he had done well to break into the box. His touch on Ounahi’s deflected shot was denied by Kounde. AFP -
Zakaria Aboukhlal (Boufal, 67’) - 6. Was bright off the bench and came agonisingly close to reaching Attiyat Allah’s cross moments after coming on. Rose well to reach another cross but couldn’t get enough of a connection to turn the ball goalward. PA -
Abde Ezzalzouli (Amallah, 78’) – N/A. Was unlucky that his block on Mbappe’s shot saw the ball fall to Kolo Muani. His late shot was blocked and he then made a superb run to set up the chance for Hamdallah. EPA
Noussair Mazraoui, a left back at Bayern Munich no less, was unable to come out for the second half. Even Walid Cheddira, the substitute battering ram up top whose finishing has left more than a little to be desired, was unavailable following his quick-fire yellow cards in the quarters.
At this level, perhaps more than any, the finest margins matter most.
“We knew we had achieved something great already and that everyone was proud of us,” Regragui said. “We are pleased with what we have done, but felt we could have gone even further.
“Those small details are what help real champions win and we saw that tonight. I told the players I was proud of them, his majesty [King of Morocco, Mohammed VI] is proud, the Moroccan people are proud, the whole world is proud.
“We worked hard, we were honest, and we showed the values we wanted to show.”
However, Morocco’s extraordinary endeavour is not yet done. On Saturday, they face Croatia, the 2018 runners-up with whom they kicked off their 2022 campaign with a goalless draw, in a match for third place.
Victory there would supply another significant dose of pride, however difficult it will be to rally the troops a final time. Although, that is what Morocco have done this tournament, time and time again.
Beaten only once in six games – remember, they topped their group – and only by the world champions at that, they can point to the positives, of which there are plenty, once the pain of Wednesday has passed.
“We are disappointed for the Moroccan people tonight: we wanted to keep the dream alive,” Regragui said. “We knew we had achieved something great already and that everyone was proud of us.”
Yet Regragui reminded this World Cup should be a starting point; even after the dream ending had disappeared from view.
“We wanted to rewrite the history books and you can’t do that with a miracle; it takes hard work,” he said. “We have given a good account of African football and that mattered because we represent our country and our continent.
“People respected us before and maybe they will respect us even more now. We have to do even better in the future. We went further than Brazil, Spain, Germany, all top sides, but we have to show that regularly if we want Morocco to be on the world footballing map.”
He added: "We might never be as good as Brazil, France, England, but I would like us to qualify for every World Cup. We have proven that Africans can go toe-to-toe with top teams. We need to work hard to show that it is no accident.”
