Sports

End of a Dream: France ends fairy-tale Morocco run, to meet Argentina in World Cup final

Published

3 years ago

December 14, 2022

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France will play Argentina and Lionel Messi in the 2022 World Cup final after beating Morocco 2-0 at the Al Bayt Stadium on Wednesday night. It was an end to a history-setting run for the Africans.

France, who won the World Cup in Russia four years ago, were tipped to beat underdogs Morocco – but this tournament has been full of shocks. Goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani ensured Didier Deschamps’ side weren’t the latest victims of an upset.

Morocco performed admirably after losing Nayef Aguerd and Romain Saiss to injury and, on another day, could’ve won the semi-final. In the end, France took their chances and Morocco were left to rue theirs. Here are the main talking points from a tense affair.

France needed just five minutes to register their first goal. Manchester United defender Raphael Varane played Antoine Griezmann in behind the defence before he found Kylian Mbappe in the middle, allowing the Paris Saint-Germain striker to get a shot off.

Mbappe’s effort was deflected, but the ball squirmed into the path of Hernandez. Goalkeeper Bono tried to put the pressure on the AC Milan defender by racing out of his net, yet Hernandez produced a calm finish to give France the perfect start.

The defending champions were expected to dominate after their early goal and came close to doubling their advantage when Olivier Giroud hit the post. Yet Morocco didn’t give up and almost equalised thanks to Jawad El Yamiq’s moment of magic.

The Real Valladolid defender forced Hugo Lloris into a desperate save after producing an outrageous overhead kick just before half-time. The Tottenham goalkeeper tipped El Yamiq’s attempt on to the post before France managed to scramble the ball away.

Morocco thought they should’ve had a penalty during the first half when Sofiane Boufal went down under Hernandez’s challenge. The defender won the ball but caught the former Southampton star with his follow-through. The incident has divided people’s opinions.

Former England captain Alan Shearer told BBC Sport: “Not [a penalty] for me, Hernandez actually gets the ball. He gets the ball there.”

Yet fellow pundit Rio Ferdinand disagreed. He replied: “He does, but then he catches the legs. Anywhere else on the pitch and it’s a foul, so why’s it not a penalty?”

Sofyan Amrabat has been one of the stars of the World Cup after helping Morocco achieve wins against Canada, Belgium, Spain and Portugal. The Fiorentina midfielder produced another superb display against the French – and one tackle will live long in the memory.

The challenge unfolded when Mbappe flew into acres of space on the left flank. Just as France’s talisman was about to cut into the box, Amrabat produced a perfect sliding tackle to save the day. No wonder Liverpool are reportedly after the Moroccan midfielder.

Morocco matched France throughout Wednesday night’s game and came close to an equaliser when Abderrazak Hamdallah danced passed several defenders. The Al-Ittihad striker failed to shoot, however, and Morocco were punished moments later.

France got their crucial second goal when Mbappe picked up the ball in the box and danced past a couple of defenders. He failed to test Bono, but the ball squirmed into the path of substitute Kolo Muani for a tap in. It was a tough end to Morocco’s terrific World Cup campaign – yet France’s ability to take their chances proved to be the difference.

Sports

WrestleMania 42: Nigerian wrestler Oba Femi beats 10-time WWE Champion Brock Lesnar

Published

5 days ago

April 20, 2026

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Nigerian professional wrestler, Isaac Odugbesan, popularly known as Oba Femi, defeated 10-time WWE Champion, Brock Lesnar, on his WrestleMania debut on Sunday.

The clash, one of the headline matches at WrestleMania 42, ended on a dramatic note as the 27-year-old Nigerian overpowered the veteran.

Lesnar left his wrestling gear in the ring after the match — a gesture widely regarded in professional wrestling as a sign of retirement.

Oba Femi, also known as “The Ruler,” is a former NXT champion and has spent just three months on WWE’s main roster.

The contest began with both wrestlers testing each other’s strength before Lesnar briefly seized control with a series of offensive moves.

However, Femi absorbed the pressure and responded with a dominant display, shifting momentum in his favour.

Lesnar delivered an F5, but Femi quickly recovered, hitting a chokeslam before finishing the contest with his “Fall From Grace” sit-out powerbomb for the pinfall victory.

The bout quickly became a major talking point on social media, with fans reacting to the upset win.

Femi, a former shot put athlete, is a two-time NXT Champion and a one-time NXT North American Champion.

Born in Lagos, Odugbesan competed in track and field during his school years before signing with WWE in 2021 through its NIL programme.

He went on to win the 2023 NXT Men’s Breakout Tournament and the 2024 Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge.

During the WrestleMania Sunday post-show, Femi sent a message to Roman Reigns, popularly known as the “Original Tribal Chief,” drawing a loud reaction from fans as he hinted at a possible title challenge before the end of the year.

Sports

BREAKING: CAF overturns Afcon final result, declares Morocco winner

Published

1 month ago

March 17, 2026

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The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has overturned the result of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals and declare MOROCCO the winner of the title.

Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 in the final on 18 January in a match which was overshadowed when the Senegalese players refused to play after the hosts were awarded a stoppage-time penalty with the match goalless.

Following a delay of around 17 minutes, the players did eventually return and Brahim Diaz’s penalty was saved before Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored an extra-time winner.

However, that result has now been overturned by CAF.

A statement by the African Football’s Governing Body said that Senegal are “declared to have forfeited the final match” with the “result of the match being recorded as 3-0 in favour” of Morocco.

Sports

FG fulfils promises as D’Tigress receive national honours, house documents

Published

1 month ago

March 17, 2026

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The Federal Government has fulfilled its outstanding promises to the senior women’s national basketball team, D’Tigress, delivering National Honour certificates and title documents for houses in Abuja.

The presentation took place in Lyon, where the African Champions are currently participating at the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifying Tournament.

The move follows a directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu aimed at clearing a backlog of promises made to the team following their 2023 Afrobasket victory in Kigali, Rwanda.

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko, led the delegation alongside the Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade. Speaking during the handover, Dikko characterized the prompt delivery as a “clear departure” from previous administrations, where state-promised rewards often faced multi-year delays.

“This is a prompt fulfilment of promises made by a President who leads with action,” Dikko stated. “Mr. President is giving every Nigerian athlete a renewed confidence that sports is a serious business capable of changing lives.”

While the physical assets (housing and honours) have been delivered, the NSC Chairman confirmed that the cash rewards promised to the squad are currently in the final stages of administrative processing. He assured the players that disbursement into their respective bank accounts is imminent.

The Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade, noted that the current administration of President Tinubu is institutionalizing a “reward system” modelled after developed sporting nations to ensure high-performance outcomes.

President of Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Engr. Musa Kida, credited the Presidency for prioritizing athlete welfare, citing it as a “legacy of a lifetime” for the sports sector.

Head Coach Rena Wakama and Captain Amy Okonkwo formally accepted the documents, affirming that the timely delivery of these incentives would serve as a catalyst for the team’s upcoming international qualifiers.