The Moroccan futsal selection faces, on Tuesday in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, its Iraqi counterpart in the final of the sixth edition of the Arab Futsal Cup, co-organized by the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA) and the Saudi Federation. of football.
Determined to retain the Arab title, the invincible Atlas Lions booked their ticket to the grand final by handily dominating the Egyptian team (5-2) in a breathtaking Clasico.
The defending champions had finished the group stage with 9 points by easily winning three victories against the team of Kuwait (6-4), Somalia (16-0) and Mauritania (13-0). During the quarter-finals, the national team beat the Libyan team (3-0) before dominating Egypt in the semi-finals (5-2).
Since the beginning of this competition, the Moroccan team has distinguished itself from rival teams by winning brilliantly during all stages of the Cup. The Atlas Lions scored 43 goals against 6 goals conceded.
These results allowed the national team to rise to tenth place in the world ranking published on Saturday by the website “Futsal World Ranking”, which specializes in the ranking of futsal teams.
On the other hand, the Iraqi team visibly suffered to reach the last four of the competition. The Mesopotamian Lions barely overcame the obstacle of the Kuwaiti team (2-1) in a breathtaking match.
Iraq qualified second in Group B after drawing against Egypt (3-3) before beating Algeria (3-2). In the quarter-finals, the Iraqi team beat Saudi Arabia (3-2) before advancing to the final at the expense of Kuwait.
During the press conference dedicated to the final game of the Arab Cup, the national team coach, Hicham Dguig, assured that his men are “fully prepared” for the latest challenge, congratulating the Iraqi team for have reached the final.
“Our course has been crowned with success in this competition, as well as that of the Iraqi team. We will do everything we can to win the title,” he said, adding that the selection has benefited greatly from this tournament considered one of the strongest Arab cups in futsal.
The Moroccan team “will play the match with great caution against a strong and organized Iraqi team”, he continued, assuring that his team will spare no effort to win the title.
For his part, the coach of the Iraqi national team, Mohamed Nazim, declared that his team “will play a difficult match against a strong and experienced competitor in Arab, continental and international tournaments”.
“We will work to give the best of ourselves, and each game has its own technical conditions,” he continued, adding that his team, which suffers from “successive injuries”, will play the game differently.
The preparatory coordination meeting for the final match was held on Monday. During this meeting, the lists and colors of the teams of Morocco and Iraq were approved.
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