After a stunning evening with a hint of red in Doha, the dream continues to exist and is more powerful than it was before.
After the Atlas Lions defeated Portugal 1-0 on Saturday to go to the semifinals of the competition, this iteration of the World Cup will be more often known as the Morocco World Cup than the version that was hosted in Qatar.
No Arab squad has ever even come close to reaching such a stage in the past. Nobody can now argue that Morocco is incapable of winning the golden trophy given the current situation. It is no longer a matter of whether or if this incredible team, which has advanced further in the competition than Brazil, can truly win the cup; rather, the question is who can stop them. Not Belgium, Spain or Portugal. They have played five games, and not a single player from the other team has scored against them.
Al-Thumama Stadium will be a pleasant location for head coach Walid Regragui and his players for the rest of their lives because it was the site of their victories over Belgium and Canada in the group stage, bringing their record to three wins out of three. It’s hard to believe, but they’ve won more World Cup games at this stadium than they have anywhere else in their whole history of competing in the tournament.
If this was a comfortable environment for the squad, the same could not be said of the quarterfinals. However, this victory was well-deserved by a team that not only knows how to defend, but also has the ability to attack quickly and effectively.
They have prevailed over the challenge posed by three great European powers, three teams who were considered to have a chance of winning, and as a result, the thousands of fans who were present at the game and the millions who watched it at home now have a team to be proud of.
Despite Portugal’s crushing 6-1 victory over Switzerland on Tuesday, it was clear from the beginning that this match would be a close one. It has been said on multiple occasions that the Moroccan defense had only been penetrated once in the eight games that came before this one. Although Regragui has only been the coach for a little more than three months, the 47-year-organizational old’s skills make it seem like the team has been together for years.
However, the incredible voyage to the final four had taken its toll on them by that point. The fullback for Bayern Munich Both Nasser Mazraoui and Nayef Aguerd, who plays in the middle of the defense for West Ham, did not make the cut. His colleague in the backline, Romain Saiss, did start after there was concern over his hamstring, but he was strapped up during the warm-up. It appeared as though the leader of the team could have reached his or her limit with this competition.
Portugal had the better start but was unable to find a way through; however, as the game neared the half-hour mark, Morocco began to get the upper hand, and all of a sudden, the game came to life. Portugal had the better start but was unable to find a way through.
The breakthrough occurred with three minutes remained in the first half, nearly completely out of the blue. Yahia Attiyat Allah, filling in for Mazraoui, made a cross from the left side of the field. En-Nesyri scored a goal by rising as far into the air as Cristiano Ronaldo did when he was at the height of his career and heading the ball into an empty net after goalkeeper Diogo Costa had come out but accomplished nothing.
It was the very first time that the nation has ever scored a goal in the knockout stages of the competition. An army of Moroccan fans went absolutely insane, which was to be expected by anyone who had watched any action at all during this World Cup.
Bruno Fernandes shot a half-volley from outside the box over goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and back off the crossbar as the Europeans, who were spurred into action, almost hit back immediately in dramatic fashion after the goal was scored against them. In a matter of seconds, Morocco made another fast break down the left side of the field, and Attiyat Allah fired wide from inside the penalty area.
It came as no surprise when Ronaldo was substituted in to save the day after Morocco came so close to extending their lead in the first attack of the second half. After finally giving in to his hamstring injury and being carried off on a stretcher after 56 minutes, Saiss’s departure caused an increase in nervousness, which was compounded when Goncalo Ramos, who had scored a hat trick in the previous match, missed what could have been Portugal’s best opportunity shortly afterward. Soon after, Fernandes fired a shot barely beyond the boundary of the area.
It should not have come as a surprise that Morocco defended deeper and deeper as they battled injuries and tiredness; after all, they have done it so successfully in the past.
Free kicks were taken from potentially hazardous locations, and there was a string of corners taken, but the red wall stood strong, and there was always the possibility of the now-famous lightning fast counterattacks.
The closer Dreamland got, the more excited everyone got, and the louder the stadium got as well. Fans contributed their own rendition of Iceland’s thunderclap, but there was no hiding the fact that the remaining ten minutes were going to be absolutely momentous in nature.
Even when Portugal did break through that backline, Bounou was there to save the day, as he did with eight minutes left on the clock, when he somehow got a touch to a powerful Joao Felix drive that was destined for the top corner. The goalie is just one of several heroes hailing from this nation who have shone brightly during this World Cup competition.
If they had not fought hard enough, there were eight minutes of injury time, which began with a low shot by Ronaldo that was saved by Bounou. If they had battled hard enough, they would have won. Then, in the subsequent two minutes, substitute Walid Cheddira was issued two yellow cards and then sent off, reducing his team, which was already under pressure, to 10 men.
The Moroccan team replied by defending even more aggressively, and they had a golden opportunity to win the game in the 96th minute when Yahya Jabrane was clear through on goal, but he could only weakly lift the ball into the arms of the goalie instead of scoring. There was still time for Pepe to take a header, but he missed the target.
The game was over when the final whistle blew. It was all gone, but it felt like it was a new beginning for football, with an Arab team in the last four and looking like they do not know how to lose and can beat anyone. Despite the fact that it was all over, it felt like a new beginning for football.
Morocco rejoiced, not for the first time, and it’s possible that it won’t be the last time either
