Last September, the most valuable strike force in women’s football landed in Morocco and abruptly, brutally dampened local expectations. Zambia were in town, and by the end of 180 minutes of sparring, spread across friendly matches in Casablanca and Rabat, they had racked up eight goals.
The Morocco national team were first softened up with a 2-0 defeat. Four days later, at the Moulay Hassan stadium, the Atlas Lionesses were crushed 6-2. There were hat-tricks for both Rachael Kundananji and Barbra Banda, strikers who have set a new bar for how much the monied upper echelons of the club game are prepared to invest in a player.
It was a chastening week. Morocco were still fresh from making history at last summer’s Women’s World Cup, the first Mena team to reach the knockout phase at that tournament, and the losses to Zambia would contribute to wholesale reflection on how much progress still needed to be made.
There were changes to personnel. Head coach Reynald Pedros was relieved of his duties, the Moroccan Football Federation replaced him with Jorge Vilda, a manager with a mixed reputation. Vilda had guided his native Spain to triumph at the 2023 World Cup but had some very public clashes with players on the way to that success.
Seven months on from the 6-2 hammering in Rabat, the decision to change coach looks close to being vindicated. On Tuesday, Morocco face Zambia at home again, with the stakes a good deal higher than they were for September’s friendlies: a place at the summer Olympic Games is on the line.
No women’s football team from North Africa or the Middle East have reached that event. The Atlas Lionesses are on the brink, again, of a major landmark and they lead this play-off tie 2-1 from Friday’s first leg in Ndola.
It is a narrow advantage and Vilda is cautious his players maintain the high level of concentration and stamina they showed in Zambia.
“We showed great commitment to get a positive result and that gives us confidence,” said Vilda. “But Zambia really intensified the pressure in the second half, where the ball was mainly in our half of the pitch and they made problems for us, particularly at set-pieces.”
From one such, a first-half penalty from Prisca Chilufya, Khadija Er-Rmichi made one of several important saves, the Moroccan goalkeeper erasing the memory of errors that peppered that 6-2 defeat.
Friday’s was a triumph of stamina, too. Morocco’s goals came in stoppage time of each half, the first an inspired effort from distance by defender Zineb Redouani, cutting inside two close markers, glancing up to check the goalkeeper’s position and arcing in a powerful, precise right-footed strike. Tottenham Hotspur forward Rosella Ayane restored Morocco’s lead close to the final whistle.
“We had plenty of chances,” said Vilda of the first leg. “And I think we probably deserve to have at least one more goal.”
He could count up at least two promising opportunities, put off target, that fell to the industrious Ibtissam Jraidi, star of the Saudi Arabian league.
As for the newer stars of the global club game, it was a rare night for Zambia when both Banda and Kundananji drew a blank. Between them, they scored three of Zambia’s goals in the 4-3 aggregate victory over Ghana in the previous round of Olympic qualifying.
Banda has since then joined Kundananji in the very highest bracket of the most prized strikers in the sport, at least in market terms. When American club Orlando Pride signed Banda from the Chinese club Shanghai Shengli last month, they paid close to three-quarters of a million US dollars; when Kundananji moved from Madrid to Bay FC in January, the Californian club invested $860,000 in the 23-year-old’s speed and strength on the ball, a record for a women’s transfer fee.
While the Olympic showpiece would welcome individuals of their calibre, the pioneering Atlas Lionesses would also be ensured enthusiastic support in France, where the football events of the Paris Games will be spread well beyond the capital city.
Whoever qualifies gets to play their first two group matches, in late July, in Nice, well within reach of the large Moroccan communities resident in Provence and the Cote D’Azur.
But the challenge, once there, is considerable. An opening fixture against the United States, gold-medallists four times in the seven Games in which women’s football has been included; matchday two against Australia’s Matildas, semi-finalists at the last World Cup and at the Tokyo Olympics three summers ago.
The last group game would be against Germany, another previous Olympic champion, and opposition who provoke some mixed memories for Morocco. The Atlas Lionesses began the 2023 World Cup with a sobering 6-0 defeat against the Germans.
What was scarcely forecast then was that, by the end of the group phase, Morocco would have leapfrogged Germany in the table to book their place in the knockout phase, at Germany’s expense. These Lionesses are a squad on a steep learning curve but, as Zambia have already gathered, they climb it fast.
Read more about the coronavirus
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
Results:
6.30pm: Maiden Dh 165,000 1,400m.
Winner: Walking Thunder, Connor Beasley (jockey), Ahmad bin Harmash (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap (rated 72-87) Dh 165,000 1,600m.
Winner: Syncopation, George Buckell, Doug Watson.
7.40pm: Maiden Dh 165,000 1,400m.
Winner: Big Brown Bear, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.15pm: Handicap (75-95) Dh 190,000 1,200m.
Winner: Stunned, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Handicap (85-105) Dh 210,000 2,000m.
Winner: New Trails, Connor Beasley, Ahmad bin Harmash.
9.25pm: Handicap (75-95) Dh 190,000 1,600m.
Winner: Pillar Of Society, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
Company%20profile
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The language of diplomacy in 1853
Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity Agreed Upon by the Chiefs of the Arabian Coast on Behalf of Themselves, Their Heirs and Successors Under the Mediation of the Resident of the Persian Gulf, 1853
(This treaty gave the region the name “Trucial States”.)
We, whose seals are hereunto affixed, Sheikh Sultan bin Suggar, Chief of Rassool-Kheimah, Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon, Chief of Aboo Dhebbee, Sheikh Saeed bin Buyte, Chief of Debay, Sheikh Hamid bin Rashed, Chief of Ejman, Sheikh Abdoola bin Rashed, Chief of Umm-ool-Keiweyn, having experienced for a series of years the benefits and advantages resulting from a maritime truce contracted amongst ourselves under the mediation of the Resident in the Persian Gulf and renewed from time to time up to the present period, and being fully impressed, therefore, with a sense of evil consequence formerly arising, from the prosecution of our feuds at sea, whereby our subjects and dependants were prevented from carrying on the pearl fishery in security, and were exposed to interruption and molestation when passing on their lawful occasions, accordingly, we, as aforesaid have determined, for ourselves, our heirs and successors, to conclude together a lasting and inviolable peace from this time forth in perpetuity.
Taken from Britain and Saudi Arabia, 1925-1939: the Imperial Oasis, by Clive Leatherdale
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Sweet%20Tooth
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New schools in Dubai
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance: the specs
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plus rear-mounted electric motor
Power: 843hp at N/A rpm
Torque: 1470Nm N/A rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.6L/100km
On sale: October to December
Price: From Dh875,000 (estimate)
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULT
Huddersfield Town 2 Manchester United 1
Huddersfield: Mooy (28'), Depoitre (33')
Manchester United: Rashford (78')
Man of the Match: Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town)
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Letstango.com
Started: June 2013
Founder: Alex Tchablakian
Based: Dubai
Industry: e-commerce
Initial investment: Dh10 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 300,000 unique customers every month
