Morocco World News
Fez, August 15, 2012
Morocco’s national team lost again on Wednesday in a friendly match played against Guinea. More than two months after their last game played against Ivory Coast in early June, the so-called Atlas Lions provided Moroccan fans with a very disappointing performance, as they lost 1-2 to the Guineans.
The Moroccan National Team looked strong at the start and dominated the game during the first 10 minutes. But the strong start did not lead to any goal. Moroccan players failed to convert in their first opportunity in the 2nd minute after a header by Houssein Kharja went wide. A second clear oopportunity was missed by by Abdelaziz Berrada in the 7th minute.
Against the course of play, the Guinean national team scored the first goal of the game at the 12th minute, after the Guinean striker Mamadou Mara received a neat center ball from the corner. Morocco’s goal keeper Nadir El Myahjri bears most of the responsibility for the first goal, as he failed to intercept a ball that seemed to be within his reach.
With their first goal, the Guineans looked more emboldened and started to pose more problems to the Moroccan team.
While the Moroccan public was hopeful to see its national team come back and even the score, the Guineans stunned the Atlas Lions with a second goal, scored in the 25th minute by Ismael Bangoura, again, because of an error of placement of the defenders, especially Qanatari and Bassir.
The Moroccan team managed to save its honor with a goal scored by Yassine Salhi at the 90th minute. Throughout the game, the Moroccan team looked very weak and suffered from a lack of cohesion between its players.
The most controversial coach in Morocco
The undeserved and exorbitant salary of Eric Gerets (estimated to be $ 250,000), coupled with the early elimination of Morocco from the last African Cup of Nations in the first round, and the poor performances of the national team against Gambia in early June, are causing unprecedented disgruntlement among Moroccans, most of whom are calling on the Moroccan Federation of Football to remove him.
The Belgium coach is considered by most Moroccans as the worst national coach in Morocco’s history. After a series of disappointing results with the Moroccan national team and its notorious inability to build a resilient and competitive squad, a group of Moroccans launched a petition in June demanding the dismissal of Eric Gerets from his post as coach of the “Atlas Lions.”
Since Eric Gerets took over in October 2010, the ranking of the Moroccan national team went from bad to worse, reaching the shameful 70th position in the global rankings. Never in Morocco’s history, as its national team been ranked so low.
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