Wahbi: Handball Confused Our Players, Mbappe Made the Difference

National coach Mohamed Wahbi expressed his reservations regarding the first goal scored by the French national team against Morocco during their quarter-final match in the 2026 World Cup, stating that the incident leading up to the goal involved a handball that affected the focus of the "Atlas Lions" players.

Wahbi explained in his post-match comments that several Moroccan players stopped playing after believing there was a foul, noting that the incident sparked considerable controversy.

The Moroccan coach said: "Some players stopped because they thought there was a handball, and indeed there was a handball. I don't know if it should have been counted or not."

He added: "In the end, the goal came after a brilliant individual effort from Kylian Mbappe."

Regarding the future of the Moroccan national team after their World Cup exit, he said: "We must continue to believe in ourselves. We will not stop here, and we need to keep working on the fundamentals and have greater depth in the squad to deal with injuries in the future."

The Moroccan national team exited the 2026 World Cup in the quarter-finals after losing to the French national team 2-0, a match that ended the "Atlas Lions" journey in the tournament but opened the door for continued development in preparation for future challenges.