2022 FIFA World Cup Tactical Preview: Morocco

Morocco are heading into the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 with fresh ideas and a rejuvenated squad.

The former coach, Vahid Halilhodžić, was sacked by the Moroccan FA following disagreements over how the team should be managed.

With this being the third time he has been sacked just before a World Cup and public disagreements between key players at old clubs, it can be assumed that there was some tension in the squad. 

The arrival of the new manager, Walid Regragui, has brought excitement back to the team, with key player Hakim Ziyech returning to the squad after being frozen out by the previous manager.

Regragui only took charge of the team in September, so while Morocco may have dominated their qualifying group and won every game, this is now a new team with a different identity and set of ideas. 

Last time out, Morocco was placed in a group that was extremely difficult to progress from, with Portugal and Spain being the favourites to make it out of that group in the FIFA World Cup 2018.

The two heavyweight European nations and a strong Iran side proved too much for a Morocco side which was unlucky to end up with only one point.

In the upcoming World Cup, Morocco has been placed in Group F with Belgium, Croatia and Canada.

Morocco is ranked 22nd in the world, while Belgium is 2nd and Croatia is 12th, making Morocco the third favourite to advance from the group.

Canada sits in 41st and has been mentioned as a dark horse for the tournament.

This tactical analysis will demonstrate what tactics we can expect from Morocco in the lead-up to the World Cup.

We will include a scout report on the squad, detailing which players are key to Morocco’s potential success in Qatar, as well as an analysis of how far they can advance in this competition.

Morocco Predicted Starting XI

Since the appointment of the new manager, we only have two friendly matches to go off of for the predicted starting XI.

In the past two games, Morocco has lined up in a 4-1-4-1 formation, with a style based on creating chances through combination plays and attempting to maintain possession of the ball in a patient system.

In goal, Yassine Bounou is one of the first names on the team sheet.

The 31-year-old has been a regular for Sevilla, and his strong shot-stopping abilities have the potential to help Morocco advance through a few extra rounds.

Arguably, Morocco’s strongest area is their back line.

Achraf Hakimi is one of the best full-backs in the world, thanks to his immense speed, ability to attack the box, and skilful crossing of the ball into dangerous areas.

Hakimi is a crucial element of the team, and his combination game with Hakim Ziyech will likely be a key factor in determining whether the team succeeds or fails in Qatar.

At left-back, Noussair Mazraoui from Bayern Munich will provide an excellent technical base from which Morocco can build play.

Originally a right-back, Mazraoui possesses the technical ability to play with either foot, which allows him to be comfortable on the left-hand side.

He is vital to how Morocco has been trying to progress the ball through the thirds, as well as providing a threat in the opposition’s box.

At centre-back, we can expect a pairing of Romain Saïss and Nayef Aguerd.

The new West Ham signing has been injured all season but is expected to feature in their final few games before the World Cup.

Aguerd’s strong box defending and his reliability on the ball in possession are just a few of the things that made the Hammers’ want to splash £30 million on him, and he will have to make sure he gets back to full fitness in time for what will be a roaring hot tournament.

On the other hand, Romain Saïss has been playing all season, but he recently picked up an injury, which makes it unclear if he will be available for selection or not.

His aerial presence would be missed if he were unavailable, but Morocco does have a young defender, Achraf Dari, available for selection who was trusted by the coach in the September friendlies.

Moving on to their midfield, Sofyan Amrabat sits at the base, with an important role in Morocco’s build-up phase.

Amrabat has been key as he drops deeper to collect the ball from the defence and helps progress it up the pitch.

Amrabat’s ability to stay patient and always offer a passing option are key ways in how Morocco will attempt to keep possession of the ball when they win it.

Ahead of the pivot, Azzedine Ounahi and Amine Harit are the #8s for Morocco.

Ounahi was pivotal in the qualification phase for the World Cup, scoring the goal that sent them to Qatar in the playoffs.

Both he and Harit are creative midfielders with excellent dribbling skills that make the pair difficult to press and tackle in the final third.

In the front line, Hakim Ziyech makes his return to the squad after coming out of international retirement.

Ziyech has seen his game time become limited in recent seasons after becoming a mere rotation option for Chelsea.

He has a wand of a left foot and the creativity to cause problems to any defence, but his inconsistency has made him unreliable at the highest level.

Nevertheless, on his day, Ziyech can cut onto his left foot from the right wing and whip it into dangerous areas like no one else, and he also can score with the same technique as well.

On the left wing, Sofiane Boufal is expected to retain his place in the Morocco starting XI.

Boufal has had a strong start to his season at Angers, and his explosive dribbling and quick feet make him impossible to dispossess.

For Morocco, he is tasked with combining on the left-hand side while also being the primary outlet for counterattacks by running onto the end of the through ball or by carrying the ball past the opposition’s rest defence.

Youssef En-Nesyri leads the attack for Morocco.

The Sevilla striker has struggled for first-team minutes this season but has scored 14 goals for Morocco in 48 appearances.

The target man will thrive off crosses coming into the box from the likes of Ziyech or perhaps cutbacks from Hakimi.   

Morocco Age Profile At FIFA World Cup 2022

The Morocco squad is entering Qatar with a squad that has experience from the previous World Cup but with the added benefit of playing in top leagues all over Europe, which should surely have helped them improve.

Some of these players were very young at the previous World Cup, so while some players showed signs of inexperience, the likes of Hakimi, En-Nesyri and Harit will now step up to play more important roles for their nation.

The majority of the squad is aged between 24 and 27, which means that this group of players are in the prime of their careers and will be coming into the World Cup fully firing.

Morocco Attacking Phase

As we can see on the chart above, Morocco ranks very highly amongst the nations in the World Cup in their attacking metrics — though it must be noted that the standard of competition they’ve faced over the last calendar year differs from the quality they’ll come up against in Qatar. 

Morocco keep a lot of possession, while they also rank in the 91st percentile for xG per match and final third passes per 100 passes.

These statistics show that Morocco is usually a side that looks to be on the ball and creates chances through intricate combination play and deliveries into the area rather than a reliance on transitional moments.

When Morocco gains possession of the ball, they look to build play out from the back rather than going long.

Sofyan Amrabat remains in the pivot, while the two central defenders split apart, which leaves Morocco with a 4-1 build-up shape.

They aim to find the lone pivot before he can progress the ball centrally to a player further up the pitch.

On occasions where the pivot is being marked, Morocco look to bypass the press by progressing down the flanks.

The technical quality of both Hakimi and Mazraoui allow them to do so consistently, which will enable them to keep possession more often.

In the past, they would have had to go long to avoid losing the ball in their own third, which could lead to a dangerous opportunity. 

The image below shows a great example of how Mazraoui can evade pressure through the use of ball manipulation to get out of a tight situation.

Evading the high press allows Morocco to have an artificial transition, one where they can attack an out-of-position defence because so many stepped up to press.

These situations often lead to high xG opportunities, as the far post runner is usually unmarked due to the number of opposition players who have stepped up to press.

Morocco’s ability to retain possession in their own third can help them to dominate possession at games during the World Cup, something that hasn’t been the case beforehand.

When Morocco faces a mid-block, Hakim Ziyech usually drifts into central midfield, from where he can make the most of his brilliant passing range and ball manipulation.

Sofyan Amrabat drops between the two central defenders, which allows the team to set up in a 3-3-3-1 shape.

Ziyech comes into the hole that is left by Amrabat, while Mazraoui and Hakimi move up the pitch with the role of outlets in case the ball needs to go long. 

The image below shows Ziyech in that central space, where he turns on the ball, looks up and plays a diagonal ball to the left-hand side for Mazraoui.

Ziyech can dribble past his opponents in tight areas, evade pressure and progress the ball in the second phase.

This will be a common occurrence at the World Cup, and Ziyech’s passing range will be key to creating chances for Morocco.

In the final third, Morocco tried to set up in a 2-3-5 formation and make use of wide triangle combinations with the wide central midfielder, wide player and player operating in the half-space.

The two full-backs retain the width for Morocco, while the two wingers become narrow and sit in the half-spaces during settled attacks.

What makes the attack so dangerous is the use of player rotation, which makes the players hard to mark and Morocco’s attacks become unpredictable.

The two #8s enable Morocco to sustain possession due to their on-ball qualities, while the further forward players all possess either excellent creative or goal-scoring abilities, allowing them to be a constant threat in the final third.

In the attack pictured above, Ziyech has drifted into the wide space, causing the Chilean left-back to follow him, thus leaving a massive gap between the left-back and the left-sided centre-back.

Hakimi utilises his blistering pace by attacking the gap that Ziyech has created.

Ounahi plays the pass into Ziyech, who can play the pass at a perfect weight for Hakimi to run onto inside the box.

In these situations, the centre forward, the left winger, and the player in the left half-space all attack the box to cause problems for the opposition backline.

Morocco showed several different ways in which they could sustain possession and create threatening situations in the final third.

It will come as no surprise to see Morocco have large spells of possession at the World Cup, and they are likely to score against some backlines they will be facing.

It would not be overly surprising to see Morocco score in every group-stage game.

Morocco Defending Phase

Morocco displays a very strong backline, which will give confidence to the rest of the squad.

Ranking in the 63rd and 72nd percentiles for aerial and defensive duels, the Morocco players are powerful in their individual duels, whether on the ground or in the air.

Being in the 12th percentile in shots against per match further demonstrates the strength of Morocco’s defence.

It supports the notion that Morocco prefers to maintain possession of the ball, thereby reducing the number of attacks they face.

From dead balls, such as goal kicks and throw-ins, Morocco looks to press their opponents aggressively.

Morocco matches up man to man to prevent their opponents from progressing the play and tries to force them to go long, where they trust their defenders to win the aerial duels.

The image above shows how tightly Morocco defends their players, making it impossible to play out from it.

However, in settled play, Walid Regragui opts for a mid-block, which has not been as successful.

The Moroccan coach set up a 4-1-4-1 formation, where either of the attacking central midfielders presses the ball while the pivot, Amrabat, looks to cut off the passing lanes to the offensive players.

There are some problems with this Morocco defensive setup, one of which is that the centre forward is always outnumbered, making it very easy for Morocco to keep possession of the ball.

Another problem is that the players seem to be a bit confused as to who should press the ball and who should sit off and protect the space.

The image below shows Ziyech pressuring the ball, but the distance he has to cover is so significant that the player on the ball has plenty of time to make a decision and release the ball.

Furthermore, the horizontal spaces between the midfield of Morocco are too large, so it becomes very easy to pass the ball through the gaps and into players further forward.

The other problem with this system, and arguably the biggest one, is the massive vertical gap between the midfield and backline.

The Moroccan defenders are worried about the space behind their defence, so they naturally drop off while the midfield holds its position to prevent the opponents from gaining possession closer to the goal.

As a result, opposition players can drift into the spaces between the lines, where they can move into the blindside of their markers, making it easy for them to receive the ball.

The lack of pressure from behind allows them to easily turn with the ball and drive towards the goal.

What ends up happening is that Morocco’s midfield is nearly non-existent, and opponents can easily pass the ball to the front line, leaving the defence unprotected.

Morocco’s lack of structure off the ball is largely worrying and will be the biggest reason for any potential failures and losses.

Morocco have to decide whether they want to hold a high line and win the ball back high, or drop off to protect the space behind.

Currently, they are not doing either to a high standard and as a result, they will begin to leak goals when they come up against tougher opposition.

Morocco Transitions

Morocco’s offensive transitions are very difficult to defend against due to the number of skilful ball carriers they have running in the open space.

The likes of Hakimi and Boufal are very quick, and their dribbling ability, combined with that speed, means they are very dangerous when running in open space. 

The image below shows an example of Boufal’s excellent dribbling skill.

We can already see one player on the floor, after they’ve attempted to tackle Boufal by sliding, and later on Boufal goes on to make another player unbalanced and beats him.

The skilful dribbling allows Morocco to have a 3v2 attack in transition, although the lack of potent goal scorers means that they do become wasteful in front of goal.

When Morocco loses possession of the ball, they are inconsistent with their actions off the ball.

At times they look to counter-press their opponents while on other occasions they drop off into their positions.

Dropping off can be a problem, as it means the opposition is allowed to control possession without much risk of losing the ball.

The Moroccan players lack the bravery and, at times, the legs to quickly counter-press their opponents every time.

On other occasions, Morocco are braver and attempt to win the ball back high.

This example above illustrates how every player on the front line moves to mark an opponent and then presses the ball, cutting off the forward’s passing option.

This example comes from the fourth minute of a match, which perhaps suggests that some of these players lack the energy or work rate to sustain this level of effort throughout the entire game.

Morocco Defenders

While the depth in defence isn’t the largest, there are plenty of possible players who may look to work their way into a starting spot if their performances improve in the last few weeks before the World Cup.

Jawad El Yamiq has recently regained his spot in Real Valladolid‘s starting line-up, which has led to a slight winning streak in La Liga.

The central defender provides adequate cover should some of the starters not recover from their injuries in time. 

Samy Mmaee is another player who could gain some minutes in central defence.

He has scored two goals in four matches in the league, which could be a benefit should Morocco need extra goals from set pieces.

Sofiane Alakouch and Yahia Attiyat Allah will provide cover for the full-back pairing of Hakimi and Mazraoui, although their lack of game experience at the highest level will likely see them stay on the bench unless there is fatigue in the squad.

Adam Masina could’ve provided strong cover at left-back, but he hasn’t had any game time since the end of August due to an injury which will see him miss the World Cup.

Morocco Midfielders

Adel Taarabt has been utilised in deeper areas in the latter stages of his career.

He hasn’t featured for Morocco and only found a club near the start of October.

His place in the squad is not guaranteed, but he could provide some experience and a cool head if the occasion gets too big for some players.

Imran Louza is another player who can slot into the midfield role.

However, there are doubts about the fact that he has been injured for the entirety of the season and is only now coming back to training. 

Ilias Chair and Selim Amallah can both feature in the attacking midfield roles, as both possess the vision to produce defence-cutting passes and the technical ability to dribble in tight spaces.

Morocco have the adequate depth to make changes if necessary or to add extra creativity when chasing games.

Morocco Attackers

Munir El Haddadi has struggled for minutes at his current club, Getafe, and while he has shown promising signs in the earlier stage of his career, he has struggled to maintain consistency in his performance and has not been up to the required level.

He can provide a threat off the bench, having played for Morocco 11 times in the last 18 months, scoring 2 goals for the nation. 

Abde Ezzalzouli is a promising young player who is currently on loan from Barcelona.

He was given his debut in September, and after a few good performances whilst out on loan, he may be given a chance to try to spark a change after coming off the bench.

Ryan Mmaee has delivered strong performances for his nation, although he hasn’t played in the top leagues in Europe.

Mmaee has scored 4 goals in 11 appearances for Morocco and could provide an alternative threat if his side requires a goal.

Morocco Key Player

Hakim Ziyech hasn’t featured for his club in a long time and is a player who seems to have been slightly forgotten about.

His inconsistent performances for his club have shown that he may not be at the world-class level.

However, Ziyech is capable of producing magic moments, and when in form, he can carry his country to significant results. 

Cutting in off the right wing, Ziyech provides over two shot assists per game on average and 6.33 into the penalty area per game.

Ziyech is in the 96th percentile for such stats, showing that he can create multiple dangerous chances per game with his ability to play deadly passes.

Ziyech also achieves 0.29 xA per 90 and 0.28 xG per 90, showing that he can both create and move into good goalscoring opportunities regularly.

The Moroccan magician doesn’t have the most outstanding pass accuracy due to his ambitious passing in the final third.

While the accuracy isn’t high, these passes are difficult to execute, usually against a settled defence, which offers huge rewards should they be successful.

Morocco World Cup 2022 Predictions

Morocco finds themselves in a tough group with second-ranked Belgium, finalists of the previous tournament Croatia, and a promising young Canadian side.

Morocco’s opener against Croatia is likely to show us which of the two has a chance of progressing into the next stage.

Belgium haven’t been at their best of late, so there is a slim chance that Morocco may even beat them and take the top spot in the group, but that is unlikely to come to fruition.

Should Morocco progress into the next stage after a second-placed finish, they will face the winner of Group E, likely to be either Spain or Germany.

It is unfortunate for Morocco that they would need a miracle to even reach the quarter-finals, but the difficult path they’ve been given can’t be changed.

This strong group of players will have a tough time showcasing their abilities and are likely to be on their way home by the start of December after the group stage.