Morocco national football team head coach Mohamed Ouahbi revealed that his squad executed last-minute tactical adjustments during their World Cup victory against the Netherlands after Ronald Koeman deployed an unexpected defensive formation on June 30, 2026.
According to a report by voetbalzone.
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nl, the Dutch team started the match with five defenders, a strategic choice that the North African coaching staff had not anticipated during their pre-match preparations.
"Toen we de opstelling zagen, moesten we meteen bijsturen," explained Ouahbi during the post-match press conference.
"We besloten lager op het veld te verdedigen dan oorspronkelijk het plan was.
Nederland had nog nooit op deze manier gespeeld, dus we moesten ons aanpassen aan de nieuwe situatie."
The Moroccan manager observed that his players gradually grew into the game as the match progressed.
He noted that the Netherlands partially abandoned the five-man defense after halftime because Morocco faced very little trouble during the opening period.
"Daarna vonden wij meer ruimte.
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Mijn staf heeft uitstekend werk geleverd door de spelers tijdens de wedstrijd de juiste oplossingen aan te reiken," stated Ouahbi.
Despite Morocco ultimately securing the victory, Ouahbi highly praised the performance of Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, noting that the shot-stopper kept the Netherlands competitive for a significant portion of the match.
"Verbruggen verrichtte een aantal geweldige reddingen," said Ouahbi. "We creëerden kansen genoeg, maar telkens stond hij in de weg.
Als Nederland deze wedstrijd had gewonnen, was hij voor mij zonder twijfel de Man of the Match geweest."
The victory further solidifies the position of the North African team on the global stage, and Ouahbi anticipates that international opponents will perceive his team differently moving forward.
"Ik denk dat iedereen ons nu respecteert vanwege wat we op het veld laten zien. Niet door grote woorden, maar door onze prestaties.
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We hebben bewezen dat we op dit niveau thuishoren," Ouahbi concluded.
