Vinay Nayudu
Doha
Ahead of the Morocco-France FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 semi-final, more than a dozen flights have been put in place to bring in more fans from Rabat, Marrakesh and Casablanca to Doha. This is in addition to the tens and thousands of fans who are already rooting for the Atlas Lions.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation gave out tickets it held to fans back home so they could travel to Qatar to watch the ‘Red Devils’ who are scripting history for the north African and Arab nation. Clearly the support for Morocco – the underdogs also termed as the ‘dark horse’ of the tournament – has been huge. On Wednesday night at the Al Bayt Stadium it will only be bigger and perhaps the second-most for any side at this World Cup after Argentina.
Feeling ‘at home,’ Morocco have been riding the crest of a wave and given the momentum gathered many feel they are slight favourites against the strong and defending champions France.
When the two sides take to the pitch there will be a lot of exchanges between the players in French too since half the Morocco team is France-born. The clash hence is expected to be tight and France, despite their stature and starry line-up, will have a lot to deal with.
The Morocco boss – their coach – Walid Regragui has, however, warned his players that they will have much more than just the threat of Kylian Mbappe.
Yet, at the same time Regragui also sent out a warning to the rivals saying that Mbappe’s Paris Saint-Germain teammate Achraf Hakimi is relishing the contest against his good friend.
"We won’t make an anti-Mbappe plan because unfortunately, there isn’t just him. When we know the level of Antoine Giroud between the lines… but Hakimi is a big champion so I’m not worried,” he said at a pre-match press conference. "They (Hakimi and Mbappe) are two champions, who won’t be giving away any gifts. Achraf is highly motivated to beat his friend,” the coach added.
The contest between the two PSG players will be a highlight of an eagerly-anticipated showdown. Mbappe predicted a France vs Morocco World Cup semi-final back in January when he was with Hakimi touring Qatar, saying he would "destroy” the defender and seemed thrilled when Hakimi’s cheeky penalty knocked out Spain and secured Morocco a place in the quarter-finals.
France played with a 4-3-2-1 combination against England in the quarter-finals with Olivier Giroud being in the lead backed by the power of Mbappe, Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele. Their defence being Theo Hernandez, Raphael Varane, Dayot Upamecano and Jules Kounde with Andrien Rabiot and Aurelien Tchouameni (the goalscorer along with Giroud in the match against England) in the middle.
Coach Didier Deschamps could well be playing the same combine to tackle Morocco.
On a roll thus far, France don’t want to be complacent. "We have enough experience in the team to not fall into that trap,” Varane, one of the players from France’s victorious 2018 World Cup campaign, said in reply to being over confident ahead of the Morocco match.
"We know Morocco are not here by chance. It is up to us experienced players to make sure everyone is prepared for another battle,” he said. "It is not easy to get to a World Cup semifinal so we are very pleased, but the only real objective is to win it,” he added. "That was always the aim.”
Yet, the Atlas Lions remain a highly-determined and unpredictable opposition. Adding deft play to passion, they have been solid both in attack and defence with a never-say-die attitude.
Youssef En-Nesyri, Hakim Ziyech and Hakimi have already shown the world their capabilities while Soufiane Boufal, Romain Saiss and Jawad Yamiq have stood out at the back. Then there is Walid Cheddira, who as a super sub, scored the brilliant goal against Portugal in the quarter-final.
To back it all, Morocco have goalkeeper Yassine Bounou who has kept three clean sheets so far. It’s also a feat no African goalkeeper has ever achieved before.
‘Bono’ apart from his sterling save of Cristiano Ronaldo’s curling kick at the top of the net also had a hat-trick of penalty saves against Spain. And, he did not play in Morocco’s first big upset against Belgium.
"The longer the game stays goalless, the better it will be for Morocco,” said Osian Roberts, currently assistant manager at Premier League team Crystal Palace and former Technical Director of Morocco Football Federation.
"Morocco play tight and solid and at the World Cup they are showing unbelievable passion. France will have a task on hand. They would find it difficult to break through. The backing from the fans is another factor that will be in Morocco’s favour,” he added while opining ahead of the semis.
The Atlas Lions are on the prowl, Les Bleus better beware!