U-20 World Cup: Ouahbi details how Morocco defeated Argentina in final

Morocco U-20 national team coach Mohamed Ouahb has explained how he planned the execution of defeating Argentina to clinch the FIFA Under-20 World Cup.

The Young Atlas Lions made history by clinching their first-ever FIFA U-20 World Cup title, defeating tournament favorites Argentina 2-0 in a final held at the Julio Martínez Prádanos Stadium.

Morocco’s rising star Yassir Zabiri scored both goals in the first half to seal a monumental victory for the North African nation. He opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a magnificent free-kick, curling the ball beautifully into the top right corner.

He doubled Morocco’s lead in the 29th minute after a run down the right flank by Othmane Maâmma, delivered a precise ball which Zabiri finished off for a 2-0 result.

Morocco scored early and managed to hurt Argentina

Speaking of his game plan, Ouahbi told FIFA.com: “We knew that Argentina have lots of experience. They have history on their side, and that helps a lot,” said Morocco’s head coach. “We were expecting them to play aggressively, so we had to keep our composure and we did that brilliantly.

“It’s difficult to analyse tactics with all the emotions running high, but we scored early and managed to hurt them with balls in behind. They’ve got some really talented players, but we fought hard and defended our box well.”

He added: “Morocco have always been a technically gifted team, and now we have added more physicality, better tactics and a winning mentality. After beating Brazil, we knew we’d be top of the group, but that wasn’t enough. We had to keep winning.

“We wanted to finish on the podium, and that’s what we told the players. Now we’re world champions and Morocco want to win a senior tournament, and not just by 2030. We’re going to give it a shot in 2026. We’re not going to wait another four years.”

He concluded: “It means a great deal because this project has been in the works for many years. It’s momentous for us because it means we’re close to winning the World Cup. We already have players capable of competing against the best.”

With this historic achievement, Morocco became the first Arab nation and only the second African country ever to win the FIFA U-20 World Cup, following Ghana’s triumph over Brazil on penalties in the 2009 edition held in Egypt.