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The Atlas Lions, who have arrived Sunday in Côte d’Ivoire for the 34th edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations, are aware of the expectations of fans following their unexpected performance during the Qatar World Cup.
«It doesn't feel like pressure, more like a responsibility. We've had a taste and now we want more», the Moroccan national team captain Romain Saiss told BBC Africa in an interview published Tuesday.
«When you reach a level that is really high, we know we have to keep this kind of standard», said the 33-year-old centre-back.
«Obviously it will be difficult to reach the semi-finals of every competition, but we have to keep this level and help football in Morocco to keep growing», he said, recalling the performance of the team during the international tournament that took place in Qatar.
Ahead of the African tournament, and following speculations on the Atlas Lions being the favourites to win the African Cup of Nations title, Saiss said that, from his point of view, «[they] are not the favourites».
«I understand why people say that but none of us [players] were born the last time Morocco won the tournament and our coach was playing when we last made it to the final.I think Ivory Coast will have the pressure because they are playing at home. There are a lot of dangerous teams with great experience too, like Senegal, Cameroon, Algeria and Egypt».
Indeed, Morocco’s only Africa Cup of Nations title was won in 1976, when the tournament was hosted by Ethiopia.
«You can see now in Africa that every game is difficult, anything can happen. It's going be a tough competition and we need to be ready mentally to go as far as possible. I think this is going to be one of the hardest [tournaments] in history», he told BBC.
Saiss is worried that these expectations would make it even harder on the team. «We know everyone is waiting for us and wants to beat us, but we can achieve something great».
«It doesn't matter the opponent - it is important for us to be focused for every game and not think about the next round. It will be a huge mistake if we do that. The main target at the moment is to get out of the group», the Saudi Pro League player argued.
«We need to be ready to suffer because it's going to be tough. At the World Cup we went far because everyone sacrificed his body to reach the semi-finals», Saiss said.
However, the player believes that the team is in good hands, referring to coach Walid Regueragi. «He's like a big brother or an uncle and he gives you a lot of trust. He is really honest with the players and I think this is really hard to find in football. He always finds the right words to motivate the team and it creates something really important between the players and the staff - you know everyone is going the same way, working hard. We are happy to fight on the pitch», Saiss concluded.
For the record, the Atlas Lions will play a warm-up match against Sierra Leon on January 11, replacing the match against Gambia initially scheduled for January 7.
The Morocco national team will have ten days of acclimatization in the coastal city of San-Pedro before their first match on January 17 against Tanzania at the Laurent Pokou Stadium. Their second match is scheduled against DR Congo on January 21, followed by their last group game against Zambia on January 24.
