Rabat, 06 March (H.S.): Walid Regragui, head coach of Morocco's national football team, resigned from his position on Thursday. He took this decision a few months before the FIFA World Cup 2026. Speculations about his future had been rife for several weeks, after which he decided to step down. Regragui cited fatigue as the reason for his resignation.

The 50-year-old Regragui had led Morocco to a historic semi-final in the FIFA World Cup 2022. This remains the best-ever performance by any African country in the World Cup. Additionally, in January this year, he took the team to the Africa Cup of Nations final, where Morocco suffered a defeat against Senegal.

Media reports suggest that Mohammed Ouahbi may now take charge of the Morocco team. He played a key role in winning the Under-20 World Cup for Morocco in Chile last year.After becoming coach in September 2022, Regragui's record was outstanding. During his tenure, Morocco won 36 out of 49 matches, drew 8, and lost only 5.

During this period, the team also set a world record for the most consecutive wins by a national team with 19 victories between June 2024 and December 2024.It is being said that Regragui wanted to resign after the controversial Nations Cup final loss in January.

After handling the team's responsibility for nearly four years, he was mentally and physically exhausted. However, the Morocco Football Federation had requested him to stay in position until a new coach was selected.Morocco's team will play two international friendly matches this month. The team will face Ecuador in Madrid on March 27, and four days later, it will take on Paraguay in Lens, France.

In the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026, Morocco has been placed in Group C alongside Brazil, Scotland, and Haiti.Morocco's captain Achraf Hakimi thanked Regragui on social media, saying that his leadership, passion, and vision inspired not only the players but also the entire country and fans around the world.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar