In this year's World Cup 8, Morocco has become the only non-European and American team, but this African team has a strong "European flavor". This year's team, there are 14 players were not born in Morocco, even the captain of the Gracchi also came from France. In the face of skepticism, Gracchi said that the strategy of using "foreign aid" had met with criticism, but now that they have reached the top 8, all the skepticism has disappeared.
Fourteen of Morocco's 26-man roster are not native-born, such as Spanish-born Ashouraf, Belgian-born Elias Chaya, French-born Paufal and captain Lou Manshas, as well as Dutch-born Xueyeji, Mashaalao, and Soufenyan Rabat, all of whom are half-European and are no strangers to the European team, Portugal.
Before the match, Gracchi lamented, "I fought hard to get these players into the team, and the issue of identity caused a lot of controversy before the World Cup. Journalists kept asking: 'Why not use native-born players?' Today, we are proving with our actions that we are all Moroccans. Going into the national team, everyone is willing to fight against all odds. I was born in France, but no one can question my Moroccan feelings."
