Arab Cup: Morocco Wins Its Second Title After an Exciting and Stormy Final Against Jordan

Doha (AFP) - Morocco's reserve national team scored a "transcontinental" goal and capped a year full of successes across various age groups by winning the Arab Cup in football, following an exciting 3-2 victory over Jordan after extra time in the final on Thursday at the Lusail World Cup Stadium, amid rainy and stormy weather in Doha.

Morocco's goals were scored by Osama Tannane with a shot from about sixty meters early in the match (4), and substitute Abderrazak Hamdallah (88, 100), while Jordan's goals came from Ali Alwan (48 and 68 from a penalty).

This is Morocco's second title after 2012, keeping the trophy in Africa following Algeria's win in 2021 also in Qatar, while Jordan failed to claim its first title in its first final appearance.

After its historic achievement at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, becoming the first African and Arab team to reach the semifinals, the pace of successes in Moroccan football has accelerated. This year, Morocco qualified for the 2026 World Cup, won the U-20 World Cup in Chile, the African Nations Championship, and the U-17 African Cup, and capped the year with the Arab Cup title, noting that its senior team is preparing to participate in the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil starting Sunday.

Morocco coach Tarik Sektioui said, "Despite the pressure before assembling the team, this team showed seriousness in work that surpasses tactical and technical qualities."

He added, "I am lucky to have men with this spirit and dedication."

On the other hand, Jordan failed to win the title for the first time in its first final appearance and suffered another loss in a final at Lusail Stadium, which hosted the 2022 World Cup final, after losing the 2024 Asian Cup final in February to Qatar.

The "Nashama" are preparing to participate in the World Cup for the first time in their history next summer in North America.

Storms and Rain

The match was held on a day marked by storms and rain that led to the cancellation of the third-place match between Saudi Arabia and the UAE after a goalless first half at Khalifa Stadium, as well as pre-match activities on Lusail Boulevard "to ensure everyone's safety" amid cold weather (14 degrees Celsius).

On Qatar's National Day and in front of 85,000 spectators, including Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Jordan played without its top scorer Yazan Al-Naimat, who suffered a severe knee injury in the quarterfinals, likely ruling him out of the World Cup finals.

The match had a Moroccan flavor, as Jordan is coached by Moroccan Jamal Salami, who faced his compatriot Tarik Sektioui.

Both teams deserved to reach the final after topping their groups in the first round, then Morocco defeated Syria 1-0 in the quarterfinals and the UAE 3-0 in the semifinals, while Jordan beat Iraq and Saudi Arabia by the same scoreline of 1-0.

Although Morocco played with a full reserve lineup, Jordan was missing some of its stars such as Mousa Tameri (French Rennes) and Yazan Al-Arab (South Korean Seoul) due to the tournament being held outside the FIFA international calendar, which organizes the last two editions.

A Spectacular Goal

In the first half, Morocco dominated and opened the scoring with a "transcontinental" goal, as Tannane launched a ball from about sixty meters, before the halfway line, which shook the net of Jordanian goalkeeper Yazid Abu Leila (4), who landed on the post and injured his cheek but resumed the match after about five minutes of stoppage.

Things turned around in the second half, with Jordan quickly equalizing after a long cross from Muhannad Abu Taha, which Alwan headed into the net past Moroccan goalkeeper Mehdi Ben Abid (48).

Morocco pushed to regain the lead, but from a shot by Mahmoud Mardi outside the area, the ball rebounded off the hand of Ashraf Al-Mahdiwi, and Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg awarded a penalty, which Alwan converted himself, ending the tournament as the top scorer with six goals, including five penalties (68).

Sektioui made three substitutions at once and got what he wanted when veteran Abderrazak Hamdallah scored from close range following a corner, after the referee initially disallowed the goal for offside (88).

In an enthusiastic atmosphere, Alwan nearly completed a hat-trick and dealt Morocco a decisive blow but missed over the bar after a well-executed counterattack (90+7).

Hamdallah fell demanding a penalty, but Jordan launched a swift counterattack missed by Alwan alone (90+8), in moments that held the breath of the crowd before the match went into two extra periods.

The first extra period started with more excitement, with a goal by Jordanian Muhannad Abu Taha from a tight angle disallowed by the referee seconds later due to a handball.

Morocco took the lead for the second time in the match from a free kick that reached Hamdallah, who followed up closely into Abu Leila's net (100), earning the man of the match award in a game that saw about thirty chances for both sides and led his team to the title.