Ouahbi's Anger and Pride After France Match

Walid Ouahbi walked off the pitch with a familiar mix of anger and pride. The scoreline was set, the damage done, but one moment still burned: France’s opening goal.

The Moroccan coach was adamant that the move should never have reached Kylian Mbappé. In his eyes, it started with a clear handball from Adrien Rabiot that referee Facundo Tello allowed to slide.

“The goal came from a bit of a… shared ball, some people stopped because they saw a handball,” Ouahbi told beIN Sports, still replaying the incident in his mind. “It was a handball, I don’t know if it should have been called or not, I don’t know.”

Players hesitated, hands went up, France played on. Mbappé didn’t wait for a whistle that never came and buried the chance, punishing that split-second of doubt in the Moroccan ranks. For Ouahbi, that was the turning point that tilted the contest.

Respect for France, resolve for Morocco

Once the dust settled on the controversy, Ouahbi’s tone shifted. He had his grievance, but he also had a clear-eyed view of what his team had just faced.

“We have to admit that we played against a very good team,” the 49-year-old said. Morocco were stretched in the first half, often chasing shadows, and he knew it. “We suffered a lot in the first half, and Bounou made a great save on the penalty.”

That stop from Yassine Bounou kept Morocco alive when the game threatened to run away from them. It bought time, and in the second half Ouahbi’s side finally found their feet.

“In the second half, we defended better and, above all, we were more composed with the ball. We were much better,” he said. The change was visible: calmer touches, braver passing, a team no longer gasping for air.

“In the first half, it seemed like some players were catching their breath. We saw that these same players started the second half well.” The same legs that looked heavy before the break suddenly carried more conviction, more belief.

The closing stages were a grind. France pushed, Morocco hung on, and the margins stayed thin. “It was tough at the end,” Ouahbi admitted, “but I believe we must continue to believe, to work.”

Building depth for the next step

Behind the emotion, there was a coach thinking longer term. Ouahbi knows this kind of match exposes more than just tactical details; it reveals the depth, or lack of it, in a squad.

“We must also continue to work on the basics, ensuring that when there are injuries, players who are less fresh, we can have a larger pool of players,” he said. That is the next phase: not just a strong XI, but a group robust enough to absorb absences and fatigue without losing identity.

“We will continue, we will not stop here,” he insisted. The disappointment is real, and he did not hide it. “We are very disappointed, we wanted more, but we have to accept it.”

Acceptance, though, does not mean surrender. For Ouahbi, it means using a contentious goal, a missed opportunity and a bruising night against elite opposition as fuel. The question now is simple: can Morocco turn this frustration into the deeper, stronger squad their coach demands?