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It was in Morocco and more precisely in Raja Casablanca, in 1997-1998, that Vahid Halilhodzic (69) led an African team for the first time in his career. Since then, the former Yugoslav international (fifteen selections), passed notably by Nantes and Paris-Saint-Germain, has coached Côte d’Ivoire (2008-2010) and Algeria (2011-2014). Back in the Cherifian kingdom after the departure of French Hervé Renard, the Bosnian coach achieved his first goal by qualifying the Atlas Lions for the African Cup of Nations (CAN) in Cameroon, where his team will be part of the main contenders for the title. On December 24, he gave an interview to World Africa.
Morocco is considered, like Cameroon, Algeria, Egypt or Ivory Coast, as one of the candidates for the continental title. Do you assume this status?
Yes, Morocco has ambition. The CAN, we win it if we have the mental, the physical, the desire. It’s a tough competition. We will have to take into account the heat, humidity and many other details. It’s not always the best team that wins. As we have inherited one of the toughest groups, with Ghana, Comoros and Gabon, we will have to perform straight away, from the first match against the Ghanaians. We will first have to get out of this hen …
You have already played in CAN twice, with Côte d’Ivoire in 2010 in Angola and with Algeria in 2013 in South Africa. What memories do you keep of it?
Mixed memories. In 2010, there was an attack against the delegation of Togo in the enclave of Cabinda. Two people died and there were many injured. With the Ivory Coast, we had to face the Togolese and as our matches were played in Cabinda, my players were afraid, they slept badly, the atmosphere was very special. In addition, there were clans within the selection… Despite everything, we managed to qualify for the quarter-finals, where we lost against Algeria. I was sacked a few weeks later as we got ready to compete in the World Cup in South Africa.
As for 2013, with Algeria, it ended in the first round. I arrived in June 2011, the team was being rebuilt, and despite the elimination, it had shown good things. A year and a half later, she competed in the World Cup in Brazil and reached the round of 16. This CAN allowed us to progress, to learn to live together.
Morocco are undefeated in 2021. Yet you have been criticized because your team was struggling to win their matches. How do you respond to your detractors?
I am very satisfied with our performance in 2021. The team has achieved its two objectives: to qualify for CAN first, then for the third round of the World Cup qualifiers, which will take place in March. It is true that we sometimes had trouble winning, as in the last two qualifying matches for CAN against Mauritania and Burundi. We lacked efficiency, but from September, when qualifying for the 2022 World Cup began, the team showed another face. We have won our six games against Guinea, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau, scoring 20 goals for just one conceded. And I believe that Morocco also offered very interesting things, by playing an attacking game.
How did you compose your workforce?
I arrived in Morocco in 2019, after the CAN in Egypt. We knew that some players were going to stop, that others would arrive. It was necessary in part to rebuild, while retaining a base. I called a lot of players, maybe too many, but I had to try it out. Today I have a good group, with an excellent state of mind. His progress is real and I am fortunate to have an important choice to compose my squad, between the players who evolve in Europe, in the Gulf or in Morocco.
But for the CAN, you made strong choices by not calling Hakim Ziyech and Noussair Mazraoui, with whom you have had quite strong dissensions in recent months. Why ?
We had to make choices. I only want in this group players who display an irreproachable state of mind, in addition to being efficient. When you get ready to play in a final phase, that means that you will spend, between preparation and the tournament, at least three weeks together and maybe more depending on the background of the team. It’s long, not always easy and there are players who may have a hard time living it, who will be angry or who will not be happy because they do not play or not enough. The balance of a group is fragile. And I have always acted according to the interests of the team, which is above all else. No player is more important than her.
Is communication a challenge in a workforce where we speak several languages?
Oh yes ! I have players born in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Morocco… To explain the tactical work in training, it’s not always easy, but we get there. I remember that during the first confinement, in 2020, I had drafted, with the technical and medical staff, a sports document in different languages for the attention of the players, to explain to them how we were going to work. I think it was helpful.