After four failed bids to host the World Cup, Morocco finally gets to stage a world soccer championship over the next 10 days although this one is little more than a consolation prize.
The North African country will stage the Club World Cup, the quirky and, in Europe at least, rather unloved tournament featuring the club champions of each continent, whose participants this year range from part-timers Auckland City to all-conquering Bayern Munich.
The cast also includes ever-grinning Brazilian Ronaldinho, who will lead Atletico Mineiro’s challenge from South America, Italy World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi and Mohamed Aboutrika, one of the finest African players of his generation.
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Ronaldinho, apparently out of the running for a place in Brazil’s World Cup squad, has recovered from a hamstring injury just in time for what could be his last appearance at an international tournament.
Lippi will lead Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande, the first Chinese side ever to take part, and Aboutrika, 35, is in the squad of African champions Ah Ahli after he was persuaded to postpone his retirement.
Bayern and Brazil’s Atletico Mineiro will parachute in at the semifinal stage next week, while the tournament gets under way on Wednesday evening in Agadir when Raja Casablanca, who qualified as champions of the host nation, face Oceania representatives Auckland.
Rather oddly, Raja warmed up by the tournament by sacking Mohamed Fakhir, the coach who led them to the Moroccan league title last season, and replaced him with Faouzi Benzarti.
The Tunisian, who has coached six clubs in his homeland and the national side, has had less than a week to prepare his team.
“This is not my first experience of taking charge of a club during a critical time. For me, trust in the group is the most important thing, trust,” Benzarti told reporters on Monday.
“The last three or four days show we have time to do something together. If we co-operate we can make progress very quickly.”
Auckland, champions of the Oceania confederation which is dominated by New Zealand, are taking part for the fourth time in five years and will be attempting to progress beyond the preliminary round for only the second time.
The quarterfinals, which somewhat confusingly feature only four teams, will be played in a double-header in Agadir on Saturday.
CONCACAF champions Monterrey, back for a third successive appearance and hoping to become the first Mexican team to reach the final, will face either Raja Casablanca or Auckland for a place against Atletico Mineiro in Wednesday’s semifinal.
Source: Supersport
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