Morocco’s Rosella Ayane, middle, celebrates with teammates after the Ladies’s World Cup Group H soccer match between Morocco and Colombia in Perth, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Picture/Gary Day)
Morocco coach Reynald Pedros stated Tuesday his workforce reaching the Ladies’s World Cup final 16 was as spectacular because the nation’s males attending to the semifinals of the Qatar World Cup.
Their run ended with a 4-0 loss to France in Adelaide however Morocco exceeded all expectations by attending to the knockout rounds at their debut Ladies’s World Cup.
“Being in a World Cup final 16 for Morocco is outstanding. It has been a exceptional journey,” stated Pedros, the previous French worldwide midfielder.
His workforce bounced again from shedding 6-0 to Germany of their first recreation in Australia to beat South Korea and Colombia, each by a 1-0 scoreline, and advance to the knockout stage.
“We’ve got been collectively as a workforce because the twelfth of June, working for and making ready for this World Cup,” added Pedros, who turned coach in 2020 and took the workforce to the ultimate of the Africa Cup of Nations final 12 months.
“I don’t assume we may have imagined going into our final group recreation with an opportunity of attending to the final 16.
“I sincerely imagine that attending to the final 16 with this workforce, for the primary time, is the equal of the blokes attending to the semi-finals.
“It’s past implausible. We solely began constructing this workforce three years in the past. There are such a lot of issues that make us proud though now we have been knocked out.”
Morocco’s males misplaced 2-0 to France within the semifinals of the Qatar World Cup and ended up ending fourth, the very best efficiency by an African workforce on the event.
Pedros and his aspect will now regroup to attempt to qualify for subsequent 12 months’s Paris Olympics, with Morocco’s ladies by no means having featured on the Video games earlier than.
“I’m going to congratulate and thank them as a result of what they’ve given us by way of feelings is sort of unbelievable, after which we’ll get again all the way down to work,” he stated.
“We’ve got the Olympic qualifiers to organize for however now we have gained expertise from this.
“I’m actually, actually proud to be coach of this workforce as a result of now we have implausible gamers.”
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