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Rabat – Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi expressed pride in his players despite their 2-0 defeat to France in the quarter-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, insisting the Atlas Lions gave everything on the pitch while acknowledging that Les Bleus were simply the better team on the night.
Speaking after Morocco’s historic World Cup campaign came to an end, Ouahbi admitted the disappointment of falling short but stressed that his young squad has laid the foundations for even greater success in the years ahead.
“We’re obviously very disappointed because our journey has come to an end. We wanted to keep going,” Ouahbi said.
‘France caused us a lot of problems.’
The Moroccan coach admitted his side struggled to cope with France’s attacking quality during the opening half, particularly down the flanks.
“The first half was very difficult. They were excellent on the ball and caused us a lot of problems on the wings. Their inverted wingers, their combinations and the spaces they found through the middle made things very difficult for us.”
Ouahbi also felt Morocco lacked the energy and precision needed to hurt France in transition.
“When we won the ball, we weren’t efficient enough in transition. We needed more runs to stretch their defensive block. They were too comfortable.”
Although Morocco improved after the break, Ouahbi admitted France deserved the victory.
“The start of the second half was much better. We had more depth, more movement and more control of the ball. But we have to recognize that France is a fantastic team. They created the better chances and were very effective in transition. We lacked ideas and freshness.”
‘We won’t look for excuses’
Despite missing key players through injury, Ouahbi refused to blame the defeat on absences.
“I’m not going to focus on injured players. That’s football. Every national team has players who miss matches.”
“When you select 26 players, it’s because you know you’ll need all 26. You can’t play a World Cup with only eleven players.”
Instead, the coach highlighted Morocco’s youth as a reason for optimism.
“We have a young team. We know we’re going to continue growing. We have talent, and the minutes these players gained during this World Cup will help us become even stronger.”
“We’re not going to start making excuses.”
Focus already turns to AFCON
Although Morocco will co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, Ouahbi insisted his attention is firmly on the next Africa Cup of Nations.
“Before 2030, there’s an Africa Cup of Nations and qualifying matches.”
“If we want to arrive in 2030 in the best possible condition, we have to prepare the next games well, continue building, qualify for AFCON and try to win it.”
He also pointed to Morocco’s long-term project as one of the strongest in world football.
“We have young players, a huge talent pool, a strong federation and a King who invests enormously so that Morocco can be where it is today.”
“We have everything we need. We just mustn’t panic. We need to evaluate ourselves honestly, improve where necessary and move forward.”
‘We Feel Capable of Competing With France’
Ouahbi was full of praise for Didier Deschamps’ side, describing France as one of the world’s strongest teams.
“They’ve been one of the best national teams for a long time. They were finalists in the last two World Cups.”
“They have extraordinary talent, but above all they work hard. That’s what makes the difference.”
Still, he believes Morocco can eventually match them.
“We feel capable of competing with them.”
“Today they were stronger than us and we have to accept that. But we also feel capable of improving, going even further, and why not, in four years, eliminating them.”
A message to Morocco’s supporters
Ouahbi also thanked Moroccan supporters around the world, saying the team always plays with the nation in mind.
“We know we’re loved and supported.”
“We don’t play for ourselves. We know who we play for and why we play.”
“I hope the fans are disappointed because we all need that winning mentality.”
“But when they take a step back, they’ll realize this is a team that will continue to make them dream, continue to fight for titles and that we’re on the right path.”
‘Hold your heads high’
Asked about his message to the players after the final whistle, Ouahbi urged them to be proud while also learning from the defeat.
“I told them to keep their heads up.”
“We gave everything and tried everything.”
“But now we have to analyse ourselves honestly. We can’t leave this tournament simply saying we’re happy or proud.”
“We need objective self-criticism at every level because we want more. We want to go even further.”
Proud of the progress
Although Morocco’s World Cup campaign ended in the last eight, Ouahbi said he was impressed by how quickly the squad embraced his ideas after taking charge only a few months before the tournament.
“We had a very clear vision with the coaching staff of how we wanted this team to play, the energy we wanted and the team spirit we wanted to build.”
“I honestly didn’t expect us to come this far in terms of the quality of our performances.”
“I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly the players bought into the project.”
The quarter-final defeat ended Morocco’s dream of reaching a second consecutive World Cup semi-final, but under Ouahbi, the Atlas Lions once again established themselves among the world’s elite, becoming the first African nation to reach the quarter-finals in back-to-back FIFA World Cups.
