DBasia.news – Even though the 2022 World Cup has ended, there are still many interesting stories left from this four-year event, besides of course the story of the Argentina national team and Lionel Messi who won the final against France.
One that is just as interesting is the progress of the African team, the Moroccan national team. Coming out of Group F as the top standings without ever losing with seven points, Morocco finished above Croatia (2018 World Cup finalist), Belgium and Canada.
Their journey was on the spotlight when in the last 16 they were able to withstand the onslaught and frustrated Spain until it ended in a goalless draw. Morocco won in the shootout and their goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was the protagonist.
In the quarter-finals, Morocco met Cristiano Ronaldo and his team aka Portugal, the team that won 6-1 over Switzerland in the last 16. However, the victory with a big score cannot be repeated against Morocco.
Instead, Portugal were frustrated by the strong defense of Morocco, which went on to win 1-0 thanks to a Youssef En-Nesyri goal. Morocco’s journey only ended in the semifinals when they lost 0-2 against France.
Just reaching the semifinals is already a big achievement for Morocco as they are the first team from Africa to do so plus they are the fourth African team to play in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
In the end, in the race for third place against Croatia, Morocco lost 1-2. Despite losing and returning home without bringing anything from Qatar, Morocco remains the champion of the people, especially the Moroccan people.
This was seen when they returned to their hometown from Qatar. Reporting from Dailymail, like the championship team, Morocco was greeted by thousands of fans who packed the streets of Rabat City and lined the streets, while singing, waving flags and lighting flares.
The Moroccan squad and Walid Regragui were also welcomed at the Moroccan State Palace by King Mohammed VI, Prince Moulay El Hassan and Prince Moulay Rachid. King Mohammed also appreciated the hard work of the Moroccan national team throughout the tournament.
Regragui along with the President of the Moroccan Football Association, Faouzi Lekjaa, were also appointed to receive the Order of the Throne, or the second highest honour, while the players received the third highest honour.
“Before the tournament we were given a 0.01% chance to do this, and we made it to the top four,” said Regragui.
“We are now one of the top four teams in the world, and if you had told me before the tournament I would have taken it. I would not change a thing.”