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To put an end to a year 2024 which started badly, Morocco will face Lesotho this Monday, November 18 in Oujda, as part of the last day of the qualifiers for the 2025 African Cup of Nations. Qualified as the organizing country of the continental event, the Atlas Lions have only one idea in mind: to succeed in the big slam.
“The assessment of these qualifications will be made after the match against Lesotho,” declared national coach Walid Regragui at the microphone of the Arryadia channel, Sunday, November 17, on the sidelines of the training session open to the media, which took place in place of the traditional pre-match press conference.
“So far, we have won our five games, and that is more than satisfactory. But we will have to finish the work to maintain this dynamic. We still have a lot of progress to make, but these qualifying matches allowed us to correct many shortcomings”, said the national coach.
For this meeting against a team already eliminated from the race for CAN 2025, but which had stood up to the Atlas Lions until stoppage time in the first leg (1-0), Walid Regragui will have to do without its captain, Achraf Hakimi. “Achraf left the group with the approval of the technical staff and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. We had an agreement with Paris Saint-Germain so that he would be released for the Olympic Games,” said the national coach.
“In return, we had to release him for a match so he could rest, because he has played a lot since this summer. We therefore chose to release him for the match against Lesotho. This will also allow us to observe other players,” he added. And above all to continue the metamorphosis carried out by the national eleven since CAN 2023.
Eliesse Ben Seghir embodies the renewal of the national team
In Ivory Coast, Morocco was eliminated in the round of 16 by South Africa, due to the poor form of certain managers, but also because of a lack of tactical ambition. Since then, Walid Regragui has adopted a completely different approach, focusing on a decidedly more ambitious gaming identity.
Certainly, the adversaries encountered so far were not heavyweights, but the intentions displayed by the Moroccans show a clearly more offensive orientation. It is not a cultural revolution, but a significant evolution on the scale of Walid Regragui. This is evidenced by the large victory won away from home against Gabon (5-1). But not only that.
Morocco is undefeated in nine matches since its elimination from the continental event last January, with eight wins and just one draw. The Atlas Lions defense was found wanting only three times. On the offensive side, the Moroccans scored 28 goals, an average of 3.1 goals per match.
In group B of the CAN 2025 qualifiers which they flew despite the absence of accounting interest, Walid Regragui’s protégés scored 19 goals and conceded only two. Obviously, the offensive desires of the EN finally find an extension on the field.
This new momentum owes as much to the tactical adjustments of the coach as to the contribution of new players. Author of three goals in seven selections, Eliesse Ben Seghir embodies the renewal of the national team. Barely 19 years old, the AS Monaco striker is gaining more and more weight in the Moroccan offensive. Most often established as an attacking midfielder, Ben Seghir brings movement and creativity, qualities that the Atlas Lions lacked to overcome low-block defenses.
The same can be said of Brahim Diaz. The double he scored in Franceville against Gabon says a lot about his sense of goal. For a first African experience far from Agadir and Oujda, the Madrilenian showed great maturity in the game. He provoked and streamlined ball circulation by constantly offering a solution to the ball carrier.
The downgrading of Hakim Ziyech
Diaz still needs to improve his sometimes rough defensive placement, but his contribution in the opposing 30 meters is so important, that it is simpler to forgive him for his slag at losing the ball. Especially since the absence of Hakim Ziyech seems to do him a lot of good, as they step on each other’s toes when they are on the field at the same time.
Indeed, the sporting downgrade of the left-hander from Galatasaray is the other main lesson from the end of the 2024 year. Long an indisputable holder in the mind of the coach, Hakim Ziyech no longer seems to fit in with Walid Regragui, who did not summon him during the last two rallies.
“There is more competition in this position. So I have more of a choice not to call up players who lack playing time,” said the coach to justify Ziyech’s absence. Obviously, between now and the start of the next CAN, in a little over a year, a lot can still happen, including the return of the 31-year-old striker. But given the profusion of talent at this position, this seems very unlikely.
What’s more, in view of theThe advent of Soufiane Rahimi on the right side of the attack. In any case, the national team has rarely seemed as strong as in the absence of Hakim Ziyech. Defensively, Jamal Harkass and Nayef Aguerd form a solid central pair. With the expected return of Chadi Riad in March 2025, the Atlas Lions will be equipped to achieve high goals: qualify for the 2026 World Cup and win a second continental title.
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