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During a press conference held, Thursday, to announce the squad selected to play matches against Gabon and Lesotho, national coach Walid Regragui addressed the controversy surrounding his visit to the Moroccan Olympic team's training camp and his instructions to the players during the recent Olympic Games in Paris.
«After the 2022 World Cup finals, we met with the National Technical Directorate and President Fouzi Lekjaa, and he assigned me to oversee the Moroccan under-23 team», Regragui said. «The goal was to win the Africa Cup that our country hosted, qualify for the Olympic Games, and win a medal».
He added that he was «fully committed to this responsibility». He explained, «In March 2023, during the match against the Brazilian national team, there were seven Olympians in the first team. In June, we avoided calling the Olympians and left them at the disposal of coach Issame Charaï, with the aim of preparing for the 2023 Africa Cup finals».
He continued that what annoyed him was the lack of recognition for his presence on the field during the Under-23 Africa Cup finals held in Morocco, and a year later he was criticized for taking to the field during the Olympic Games.
He further explained that after being chosen by Lekjaa to oversee the Olympic team, «I selected Tarik Sektioui as coach, and I take responsibility for that. After we lost a game at the Olympics, they said it was the first team coach's fault. We worked to convince clubs to allow players to play for the Moroccan national team, and for a whole month, I was the one who traveled to meet with Monaco, Real Betis, and Le Havre».
«It's true that I couldn't get Chadi Riad and Sibari», he added. «The most important thing is the result. We won the African Cup and came back with an Olympic medal. I understand that some people are not used to our way of working, but I congratulate Tarik Sektioui for doing an exceptional job».
