Houston, July 5 (IANS) Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi has said that his team is no longer a “surprise” but a “real contender” at the FIFA World Cup 2026 after beating Canada 3-0 to reach the quarterfinals. Morocco had become the first African nation to reach the semifinals at the FIFA World Cup in 2022 and are on course to emulate that performance.

Canada was the more aggressive side in the first half. It put constant pressure on Morocco, forcing uncharacteristic mistakes and attacking with speed whenever it won the ball. But the Atlas Lions showed their class in the second half, with Azzedine Ounahi scoring twice before Soufiane Rahimi added a late third to seal the win.

“When people talk about Morocco now, they are talking about a major footballing nation,” Ouahbi said in the post-match press conference. “It is a great source of pride, but I think this is only the beginning. We want to keep going.”

The coach said that tactical changes in the second half were the key to the victory, reports Xinhua.

“We were better in the second half. They were just as intense, and yet their performance was not as good. The changes we made made a difference. We were in better control. We tried to make passes behind their defense, and that forced them to defend facing their own goal. That worked well for us,” he said.

Despite the 3-0 score, Ouahbi said he expected a tough fight from the co-host. “I was expecting the most difficult game so far, and I was right. I really expected this team to be a problem for us. You are not going to see many 3-0 scores in the Round of 16.”

The result means Morocco will make its second straight appearance in the quarterfinals after becoming the first African team to reach the semifinals in 2022.

In their quarterfinal match at Boston Stadium in Boston on Thursday, Morocco will next face two-time winner France, who got the better of Paraguay 1-0. It will be a rematch of their last-four stage clash four years back, and Morocco will be hoping for revenge.

“We don’t want to stop. We will keep the same ambition and the same confidence. We want to reach the final,” said Ouahbi. “It is not about revenge against any opponent. We just want to go as far as possible and make our people proud,” he added.

–IANS

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