The weight of half a century of Africa Cup of Nations expectations lie on the shoulders of Walid Regragui, Morocco’s head coach. He was a right-back the last time the Atlas Lions reached an Afcon final, which they lost to hosts Tunisia in 2004.
The manager that day, Zaki Badou, the 1986 African footballer of the year, was sacked barely a year afterwards, having failed to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany – despite his side’s unbeaten qualification run, with Tunisia sneaking ahead of them on goal difference.
With his feet now in the burdensome shoes that Badou wore, Regragui is not naive about the very serious possibility that he might not take the Atlas Lions to this summer’s World Cup. Despite his team becoming the first African side to reach a World Cup semi-final four years ago and their qualifying for this summer’s finals, that remains possible should Morocco fail to beat Senegal this evening at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.
“Every coach knows he must be prepared for the sack [if he doesn’t win]. But I don’t think about that… I’m not afraid,” Regragui said before his side’s semi-final victory over Nigeria.
‘I should be bulletproof but this is Morocco. I accept it and fight for my country’
‘I should be bulletproof but this is Morocco. I accept it and fight for my country’
Walid Regragui, Morocco manager
When I asked Regragui if he is surprised by the pressure he has been under to win the 35th Afcon 50 years after Morroco’s last title, despite his feat in Qatar four years ago, he said: “I should be [bulletproof from an arbitrary dismissal]. But this is Morocco. And this is how it is. We are like this. I accept it. And I fight for my country.”
Amine El Amri, a Moroccan football journalist, explained this conundrum ahead of the final, in the context of the hosts’ perennial disappointment.
“The difference is that Badou was heavily criticised before his best run as Morocco’s head coach, during the 2004 Afcon,” says Amine El Amri. “A couple of weeks beforehand, Morocco lost and drew to Mali in back-to-back friendlies. Badou then had a bullseye on his back… Regragui was on that team and I’d like to think that he learned to be patient from Badou.
“The 50-year [Afcon] drought is not Regragui’s doing, of course. But being in charge of the Atlas Lions comes hand in hand with the parameters [of ending it]. Walid is a very honest and direct person in his speech – not having grown up in Morocco, his words can be interpreted as arrogance, which, for me, is definitely not the case. In North Africa, if you’re deemed too vocal when you lose, it can backfire pretty badly.
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“Even if he doesn’t win the Afcon, Walid will still be recognised and cherished as one of, if not the best, manager in Moroccan history. But losing the final could also spark a wide range of criticism, especially in the days after the final.”
Frank Simon has covered the African game for decades and has known Regragui for more than 20 years, and says the job has forced his friend to develop a thick skin.
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“When he started, he was a bit soft and the pressure of the Moroccan press was so heavy,” says Simon. “These days, you can see he is a bit nervous when he is dealing with the media. There is no smile on his face. But when he is not on duty, he is still the same person, close to his roots and going back to the suburbs of Paris where he grew up.”
Regragui will need his tactical wits, with Senegal arguably the most balanced team in the tournament and under the inspirational leadership of Sadio Mané, who wants to add a second title to the trophy cabinet of the Lions of Teranga, having confirmed that this will be his last Afcon.
Mané’s match-winning goal against Egypt in the semi-final sent a telling message about the intentions of the West Africans, who won their first Afcon in 2022 in Cameroon. They reached the final in the preceding 2019 tournament in Egypt.
How Regragui deals with the experience of the powerful Senegalese, who are not short of technical nous and will not be intimidated by the atmosphere, will be a test of character and title-winning resolve for the 50-year-old, in what promises to be a pulsating finale.
Photograph by Gabriel Bouys / AFP via Getty Images