Tunisia

‘Morocco’s Guardiola’ leads way for African coaches at Qatar World Cup

20-Nov-2022 08:00:20 | Guardian

All African team coaches in Qatar will be homegrown, for the first time, including a familiar face in Cameroon’s Rigobert Song

“I can play a lot of different styles,” said Morocco’s coach, Walid Regragui, this month. “I admire Guardiola, Simeone and Ancelotti, but I also have my own style which allows me to adapt the team according to the qualities of the players available.”

Regragui, a former defender born in France to parents from Fnideq in northern Morocco, spent three years playing in Spain and won 45 caps for Morocco but never appeared at a World Cup finals. Yet his appointment to replace the Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic at the end of August represented a significant moment in the history of African football.