Morocco tries to overcome turmoil and bet on Chelsea star return

In the months leading up to a World Cup, all the teams want is calm. Avoiding player injuries and warding off controversy around the team is a fundamental part of preparation.

Morocco, however, could not avoid a turmoil on the eve of the World Cup in Qatar.

In early August, about three months before the tournament began in the Middle East, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation announced the resignation of coach Vahid Halilhodzic. The entity justified the decision on the grounds of “differences of opinion”.

His departure, however, came as no surprise. There was already great wear and tear with some of the team’s players, especially with one of the stars of the squad, striker Hakim Ziyech, 29, from Chelsea (ING), accused by the coach of not dedicating himself to training and games.

“The players I selected are the best in the country. I don’t choose a player who can unbalance the group. Not even if his name is Messi. Ziyech’s behavior doesn’t fit”, he shot.

The player did not receive well the criticism of the commander and announced that he would leave the national team. “I feel sorry for the fans, but this is the situation,” said the athlete in February of this year.

The conflict with the Moroccans, however, is not an isolated fact in the Bosnian coach’s trajectory. History also weighed against him.

Halilhodzic was sacked from the Ivory Coast squad months before the start of the World Cup in South Africa. His behavior was also the reason why the Japanese team let him go after qualifying for the Russian Cup.

At least he managed to do a memorable job at a World Cup. His great achievement came ahead of Algeria, who gave Germany a hard time in the 2014 round of 16. The game went on until extra time, but the Germans won 2-1.

The Bosnian has been in charge of Morocco since August 2019. In 30 matches ahead of the team, he has performed well, with 20 wins and only three defeats.

In the qualifiers for the Cup, he had no difficulties in qualifying. The country easily led Group I. Then they overcame the Democratic Republic of Congo by 5-2 in the aggregate score of two games, guaranteeing their place in the competition.

He also qualified the country for this year’s Africa Cup of Nations. The clash with the athletes began precisely in this competition, when Morocco fell in the quarterfinals, surpassed by Egypt.

To replace Vahid Halilhodzic, the federation brought in the Moroccan Walid Regragui, announced in the post in September. Right away, his first mission was to smooth the edges of the squad and create a unit before the World Cup.

In his first call-up, he brought back Ziyech, in addition to calling other important names who were also fighting with the former coach, such as Mazraoui, from Bayern Munich, and Hakimi, from Paris Saint-Germain. The trio was part of the group that played in the friendlies against Chile and Paraguay — the African team beat the Chileans 2-0 and drew goalless with the Paraguayans.

In Qatar, Morocco will face Belgium, Croatia and Canada. According to the Moroccan coach, the main objective is to pass the first phase. “We have to have an ambitious speech. We will do everything to pass,” he said.

Morocco debuted in the World Cup in 1970, when they lost two games, drew one and ended up out in the first phase. This will be his sixth participation in the tournament.

The eliminations were in the group stage in 1970, 1994, 1998 and 2018. They only made it to the knockout stage once, reaching the round of 16 in 1986 when they lost 1-0 to West Germany.

“A successful World Cup for us means getting past the first stage. We are not going to lie to each other”, summarized the Moroccan coach.