Morocco’s historic world cup run came to an end in a 0-2 loss to France in the semifinal of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, which left the North Africans disappointed.
With a goal by French defender Theo Hernandez in the fifth minute, the Atlas Lions’ dream came crashing down quickly and early. Achraf Hakimi, Ziyech, and Abderrazak Hamdallah, among others, pushed, but the history-making lions persisted in pursuing and hit the woodwork towards the end of the first half.
In the second half, Morocco reentered the game and completely took control of possession and the game. There was a chance of a tiebreaker. But when El Yamiq’s aerial effort hit the woodwork, they were once more denied one.
In order to seal their spot in the final and put an end to the African and Arab fantasy, France had to dig deep, relying on the countdug dig and punishing the lions for missed opportunities.
Against Sunday, the final will have France taking on Argentina, with Morocco competing with Croatia for third place. They will have to be proud of the north Africans’ historically significant and truly incredible World Cup performance. Something that was evident in the arena after the match against France, when fans and spectators applauded them loudly.
