'You made Arab world proud': Sheikh Mohammed lauds Morocco at World Cup quarterfinals
Morrocco’s World Cup dreams were dashed on Thursday as France eased into the semi-finals of the World Cup by defeating the Atlas Lions 2-0.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, called their performance honorable, saying that the Arab World was proud of them.
“We are proud of the honorable performance of the Moroccan national team on the world’s biggest sporting stage. You made the Arab world proud. Thank you, Atlas Lions. Hard luck — but your best is yet to come, God willing,” he said in a post on X.
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Captain Kylian Mbappe scored his eighth goal of the tournament to inspire France to a comprehensive 2-0 World Cup quarterfinal win over Morocco on Thursday and set up a last-four clash with Spain or Belgium.
Mbappe put France ahead at the 62nd minute by scoring the first goal of the match. He picked up the ball at the edge of the Morocco area and bent the ball around Diop and into the top right corner.
It became the 20th World Cup goal by Mbappe.
France’s Ousmane Dembele doubled the lead for France at the 66th minute.
Morocco has never reached a World Cup final. In 2022, the Atlas Lions knocked off Belgium, Spain and Portugal on its way to the semifinals, the first African or Arab nation to get that far.
France ended the magical run with a 2-0 win, and Croatia beat them 2-1 in the third-place game. That fourth-place finish remains the best by any African team.
