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BEIRUT (AP) — Morocco’s followers within the Arab world took the North African crew’s 2-1 loss to Croatia in Saturday’s World Cup third-place playoff philosophically. The crew had already made historical past, turning into the primary Arab and first African crew to achieve the semifinals within the worldwide soccer event.
Its loss to France on Wednesday dashed followers’ hopes that Morocco would change into an underdog champion, however many had hoped that it might at the least take third place in dealing with off in opposition to Croatia.
Within the Moroccan capital, nationwide crew’s followers had been upset by Saturday’s loss, however pointed with pleasure to the crew’s historic efficiency.
“They continue to be champions in our eyes,” stated Soukaina Makkaoui, a fan in Rabat. “They’re now among the many 4 prime groups on the planet.”
Ali Hachimi, one other Moroccan fan, was each proud and unhappy.
“We might have favored to complete third as a result of the gamers deserved it after giving their all,” he stated.
Alongside the way in which, the Moroccan crew charmed many Arab soccer followers who noticed within the crew a mirrored image of themselves, with gamers waving the Palestinian flag after their wins and celebrating on the field with their mothers and youngsters.
Seeing Palestinian flags fluttering within the stadium “was an indescribable feeling,” stated Ibrahim al-Lilli, who was amongst 1000’s of followers within the Gaza Strip who gathered to cheer for Morocco on Saturday.
The video games affirmed that the Arab avenue “helps the Palestinian trigger no matter what their governments do,” he stated, referring to the Abraham Accord normalization agreements that 4 Arab international locations — together with Morocco — signed with Israel in 2020.
Followers within the besieged Gaza enclave discovered a bitter solace in the truth that the northern Africa Arab nation received so far as it did.
“It’s a defeat, albeit with a style of victory and pleasure,” stated Ahmed al-Najjar, one other fan in Gaza.
In Beirut’s Tarik al-Jdideh neighborhood, the place followers had been additionally rooting for Morocco, Muhammad Shaalan stated the crew’s fourth-place end continues to be some extent of pleasure for the Arab world.
“They arrived to the ultimate video games and so they defeated three of the very best large European groups (Belgium, Spain and Portugal),” he stated. “I bow my head in respect to them as an Arab crew.”
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Related Press writers Fadi Tawil in Beirut, Tarik El Barakah in Rabat, Morocco, and Wafaa Shurafa in Gaza Metropolis contributed to this report.
