Walid Regragui hopes Morocco’s performance at the FIFA World Cup™ is showing why Africa deserves to be competing at the highest level of the game.

Regragui has made an instant impact on the team since he was appointed as Morocco head coach at the end of August.

Since then, the Atlas Lions are unbeaten, conceding only an own goal against Canada and reaching the quarter-finals at Qatar 2022.

Regragui’s short stint has included an upset win over Belgium and a penalty shoot-out success against highly-fancied Spain in the last 16.

Having spent much of his coaching career with clubs in Morocco, Regragui said: “Ten years I am a coach, nobody looked at me. ‘No, it is impossible, he does not have the experience. Let’s look at somebody else’.

“I’m in the quarter-final. Explain this miracle.

“Experience doesn’t matter. It’s skills. It doesn’t matter your background, where you’re from; skills matter. If you’re not worthy, you don’t have the skills, you can leave.”

Regragui will draw strength from support back home in Morocco, Africa and perhaps the adopted home crowds in Qatar.

“We want to show Africa deserves to be here, Morocco deserves to be here, football is global,” he said.

“We have a federation behind us, a whole people behind us, a whole continent behind us. We have the Arab world. That’s a lot of people. That’s what we’re going to draw from.”

Morocco will take in Portugal in the Quarterfinal of the FIFA World Cup at the Al Thumama Stadium on Saturday.

Morocco will hope to be the first African team to reach the Semi-finals.

Kelvin Trudeau Musako

Football Journalist | TotalEnergies AFCON 2021 Photographer | Media Officer - Kabwe Warriors FC | Graphic Designer | Videographer