A qualification in the round of 16 for the first World Cup in their history, finishing second in the H, ahead of Germany, which was among the favorites… The joy of the Moroccan women was logically up to the XXL feat realized, when finally discovering that they were in the final phase of this World Cup.
The last two games of the group stage, those of group H, were played at the same time on Thursday. On the one hand, Germany faced South Korea, already eliminated, to save its second place and even seek the first. On the other, Colombia, in a very favorable tie to qualify, was opposed to Morocco on a mission to snatch a place in the round of 16.
The Atlas Lionesses did their part by winning 1-0. They just had to hope that the Mannschaft didn’t win against the Koreans. The wait lasted long minutes, with additional time of… 16 minutes. Without the Germans, held in check 1-1, regaining the advantage.
Around the lawn, around a telephone, the Moroccans held their breath. Then the liberation came, the tears with it. The coach, Reynald Pedros, was not spared by this wave of emotion. We also saw him take his head off, rub his eyes. He and his players have achieved an XXL feat, and will face France on August 8, at 1 p.m.
