Rabat – Lisandru Olmeta’s words came back to haunt him and Yassine Gassime made sure of that. Before France’s U20 World Cup semi-final against Morocco, the young French goalkeeper told reporters he’d already told his parents to “book tickets for the final.”
Ninety minutes, extra time and a penalty shootout later, it was Morocco celebrating and Yassine Gessime delivered the perfect reply.
The semi-final in Valparaíso was full of the tension of a years-long rivalry between Morocco and France. Olmeta, the son of former Monaco keeper Pascal Olmeta had been one of France’s star players in the tournament and entered the match against Morocco with a lot of confidence.
But the Atlas Cubs, with the same discipline they displayed in Spain, Brazil, and the United States earlier in the competition, never backed down.
Poetic payback for the Morocco U20 team
After a first-half penalty that rebounded off Olmeta and into his own net gave Morocco the lead, France fought back through Lucas Michal’s equalizer. The score was 1–1 at the end of extra time, setting up a penalty shootout that Morocco won 5–4 to reach their first-ever U20 World Cup final.
After the match, Moroccan players celebrated, cameras caught winger Yassine Gessime talking to reporters with a smile: “We came into this match being humble. We didn’t say we were going to do this or that. But Al Hamdullah, my mom came over — and she’s not leaving before Sunday.”
Olmeta’s earlier quote was one of misplaced confidence, but Gessime’s answer was Morocco’s understated mentality throughout the tournament.
The Atlas Cubs have been the surprise of the tournament, with their tactical maturity, especially in knockout matches against big teams like the USA and France.
The win sent Morocco into uncharted territory: their first-ever U20 World Cup final, where they’ll face Argentina.
