Morocco head coach Walid Regragui has acknowledged that his side has been affected by several refereeing decisions at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, but insists the Atlas Lions will not use them as excuses.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference, the national team coach revealed that Morocco had experienced a number of officiating issues during the tournament, while stressing the need to continue supporting African football.
“It is certain that Africa has always been the subject of doubt regarding refereeing, but we are working well in our continent and we must support it,” Regragui said.
He continued, “Yes, we have suffered from numerous refereeing errors in the matches against Tanzania, Mali, and also Cameroon, but we are not looking for excuses.”
The Morocco coach made it clear that he does not wish to dwell on refereeing matters, despite feeling his team has been hard done by on several occasions.
“I do not want to talk about the refereeing despite the fact that we were subjected to a number of mistakes, and you can also follow the last edition of the CAN, but we do not hide our silence on that,” he added.
Regragui also pointed out that Morocco’s performance, particularly against Cameroon, spoke for itself, insisting the team deserved its progress on merit.
“We must be objective. We were the better team against Cameroon throughout the match, and we should always support our continent instead of attacking it,” he stated.
Morocco will take on Nigeria in what will be a tough semi-final clash at AFCON 2025 on Wednesday, January 14.
