Walid Regragui loses the trust of supporters

Arguments that don’t pass. In an interview with the Arryadia channel, Walid Regragui justified the failure at the CAN Côte d’Ivoire 2023 by the climatic conditions in San Pedro - an Ivorian city known for its high humidity level - where the Atlas Lions were playing. "We started the preparation 15 days before the start of the competition. Our arrival in San Pedro was 10 days before our first match, just to adapt to the climate, because there was 80% humidity and temperatures up to 36°," he explained. According to the Moroccan team coach, his players were unable to adapt to the climate.

The statements of the Moroccan technician provoked reactions from Internet users. On X (formerly Twitter), some of them strongly criticized Regragui. "The climate doesn’t just affect our players, but all the teams," writes one Internet user. "This interview with Regragui has only sunk him. He did not assume his mistakes, he talks to us about humidity (as if it were a surprise) and contradicted himself a lot. His strength has always been the consistency of his words," fumes another. Some Internet users even went so far as to compare Regragui to the Algerian technician Djamel Belmadi who helped his country win the 2019 CAN before sinking in the last two editions of the competition. "We are witnessing the desperate ’belmadization’ of the Mountakhab with this hostage-taking. From now on, you will see a completely different face of Regragui in the press conference: arrogant, haughty, aggressive, whiny. He will lock himself in this bubble thinking that he is persecuted. Fiasco 2025," comments another.

Clearly very upset with the coach of the Atlas Lions, another account drives the point home. "I’ll repeat myself, sorry for those who have already read me on this subject: the climate of sub-Saharan Africa did not prevent Tunisia from regularly alternating between semi-finals and quarter-finals. Of the 7 CAN that Egypt wins, there are 4 in sub-Saharan Africa (I don’t know where to place Sudan, let’s say 3 for the most picky)," he analyzes. He continues: "There are only 5 countries in North Africa, it’s statistically not incoherent that they are less represented in the final square. According to the UN, there are 8 countries in Central Africa: in 2022 there is only one in the semi-finals (Cameroon) as many representatives as North Africa (Egypt). 2017 again one in the semi-finals (Cameroon) as many representatives as North Africa (Egypt). 2015 Equatorial Guinea survives but no representative from North Africa. 2013 2012 and 2010: no representative from Central Africa when North Africa can send 2 in 2010. The most regular region in the CAN semi-finals is West Africa and guess which is the region of Africa containing the most countries... it’s West Africa BRAVO. It’s not a story of advantage or disadvantage, just probabilities and regularity."

He will conclude with these words: "[...] to think that sub-Saharan countries have a significant advantage over their northern neighbors is quite ridiculous when you see the proportion of players being installed in European championships in the majority of African selections without even mentioning binational players who add to the equation. In the 2023 CAN final you have 11 starting players out of 22 who were trained/grew up outside the African continent, so what are we talking about finally? To indulge in these discourses is to hinder the progress of one’s country, the CAN in Egypt did not prevent Morocco from being eliminated by Benin for example... the problem is elsewhere than in the climate!"