Foxborough, July 10 (IANS) Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi remained optimistic about his team’s future despite their FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign ending with a 2-0 defeat to France in the quarter-finals, insisting the Atlas Lions have laid the foundation for sustained success on the global stage.

France booked their place in the semi-finals after goals in the second half ended Morocco’s hopes at Boston Stadium, with Kylian Mbappe playing a key role as Les Bleus once again proved too strong for the African side after also knocking them out in the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup.

The defeat brought Morocco’s historic campaign to an end, although they became the first African nation to reach the quarter-finals in consecutive FIFA World Cups.

Speaking after the match, Ouahbi admitted his side found it difficult to impose themselves against one of the tournament favourites.

“We have to acknowledge that we were up against a very difficult opponent. We struggled a great deal in the first half, but Bounou’s penalty save kept us in the game.

“In the second half, we defended better and were calmer in possession. We started the second half well, but their goal came from a rather strange sequence, a scramble really, and Mbappe’s individual brilliance was what ultimately led to the goal,” Ouahbi said after the match.

The Morocco coach, who took charge only three months before the tournament, said his side must use the disappointment as motivation to improve.

“It was difficult in the end, but we have to keep believing and keep working. We need to work on the fundamentals so that when injuries strike, or when players aren’t at their best, we have a wider range of options on the bench that we can rely on.

“We will carry on. We won’t stop here. We’re disappointed because we wanted more, but we have to accept what happened today,” he added.

Despite the exit, Ouahbi believes Morocco’s future remains promising, especially after guiding the country to the FIFA U-20 World Cup title in 2025.

“The future looks bright for Morocco if we continue on this path. We have a strong group of players and some outstanding young talent. We’ll remain confident, and we won’t allow this defeat to discourage us,” he said.

Midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, one of Morocco’s standout performers during the tournament, admitted France’s quality prevented his side from executing their game plan.

“We wanted to play our usual game, and we’d worked on certain aspects of that with the coach in training, but football isn’t an exact science, and things didn’t go the way we’d planned. We have to adapt. Our opponents played well, and we have to accept that,” Bouaddi said.

Reflecting on Morocco’s campaign, the youngster said the quarter-final defeat would provide valuable lessons for the future.

“Before the match, we knew we were facing a very strong French team. We knew it would be difficult and that we’d have to put in a huge effort, and that’s exactly what the players did. Everyone gave 100 per cent. But that’s football. You can’t win every match.

“This match will help us develop for future tournaments because it showed us what we’re missing and what small details we need to address if we want to go even further,” he added.

–IANS

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