There is absolutely no euphoria among Morocco players following a World Cup opening draw against five-times champion Brazil but the team are aiming to go beyond their semi-final spot four years ago, midfielder Azzedine Ounahi said on Thursday.
Morocco, who stunned Brazil by taking the lead before settling for a 1-1 draw in their opening Group C match last week, face group leaders Scotland on Friday, with a win pushing the Africans closer to the knockout stage.
The Scots, winners 1-0 over Haiti in a scrappy opener, will seal qualification with victory.
“We know this World Cup will be longer than Qatar 2022 and we need to manage the entire tournament well. We did not come here to just play Brazil, play a fabulous match and that’s it,” Ounahi told a press conference.
“We want to go further than we did in Qatar.”
Wave of enthusiasm
Four years ago, Morocco, who will co-host the 2030 World Cup with Portugal and Spain, beat Belgium, Spain and Portugal on their run to the last four, stunning the football world and unleashing a wave of enthusiasm back home.
This time round Morocco are no longer tournament dark horses, and against the Scots they are the clear favourites.
“We all know that we need to get a result,” Ounahi said. “We have 40 million Moroccans behind us. We have an abundance of talent, a complete squad, and we hope to do better than in Qatar. We are aiming to go to the furthest possible point.
“Tomorrow’s match will be more important and harder. Scotland have three points, we have one and we cannot forget that. We need to win so our third match (against Haiti) is easier for us,” said the midfielder.
The top two teams in each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, qualify for a new round of 32, with 48 teams in the competition compared to 32 four years ago.
Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said there was no lingering euphoria among his players following the draw against Brazil.
“We cannot forget the Brazil match but we have to switch to Scotland,” Ouahbi said. “We have one point and they have three points. Euphoria? no euphoria. The players know it, we know it. We have to be even better for the next match. We will develop our game and our level.”