Sektoui Reveals Reasons for Morocco's Victory in the Arab Cup

Tarik Sektoui, the head coach of Morocco's second national team, expressed his pride in leading his team to win the Arab Cup football title, which was hosted by the Qatari capital, Doha.

Morocco won the Arab Cup title for the second time in its history after an exciting 3-2 victory over Jordan on Thursday in the tournament final.

In front of a large crowd at Lusail Stadium, Morocco opened the scoring early with a stunning goal by their star Osama Tnan in the 4th minute, with a wonderful shot from the middle of the Atlas Lions' field.

The Jordanian team rallied in the second half, with Ali Alwan scoring the equalizer in the 48th minute, then the same player scored the second goal in the 68th minute from a penalty kick. However, the veteran Abdelrazak Hamdallah equalized for Morocco in the 87th minute, leading both teams to extra time after the regular time ended 2-2.

Hamdallah continued his brilliance by scoring Morocco's third goal and his personal second in the 100th minute, crowning himself the undisputed hero of the match.

Sektoui said at the post-match press conference that the players gave their utmost and managed to meet expectations by winning the title. He explained that the players had pledged before the tournament to give their all, and indeed dedication was present alongside loyalty, team spirit, and high professionalism that enabled them to achieve this great accomplishment.

The Moroccan coach confirmed, "In the second half, despite Jordan's success in coming back and taking the lead with the second goal, the Moroccan players had a wonderful reaction, delivering a heroic performance that allowed them to score the third goal and maintain the lead until the final whistle."

Sektoui pointed out that the record crowd attendance at the final played an important role in motivating the players and pushing them to come back in the score and then win the title.

The Moroccan coach added that "the Jordanian team performed at a high level and gave their best, showing a strong fighting spirit in the final."

He emphasized that "despite the pressure before assembling the team, this team showed seriousness in work that surpassed tactical and technical qualities. I am lucky to have men with such spirit and dedication."

Sektoui concluded by saying, "This achievement confirms that Moroccan football is on the right path thanks to the support it receives from officials, and the desire and ambition of all members of the system."

For his part, Abdelrazak Hamdallah, who won the best player award in the final, expressed his happiness with the title after the victory over Jordan, affirming that they delivered the level that deserved the championship in the tournament's final scene.

Hamdallah revealed that all players exerted great effort throughout the tournament from the start until the final, as the Moroccan team had a wonderful journey with distinguished performance, crowning their efforts by winning the title.

Thus, the Moroccan team, which participated in the tournament with its second team led by local head coach Tarik Sektoui, regained the title that had been absent from its trophies for 13 years, having previously won the championship only once in 2012 in Saudi Arabia.

Morocco also shares second place in the list of countries with the most Arab Cup wins alongside Saudi Arabia, both trailing by two titles behind Iraq, the historical champion of the tournament with four titles.

This victory also gives Moroccan football a very good morale boost, especially before the first team embarks on the Africa Cup of Nations finals, which it will host starting next Sunday.