FRANCE 98 – Match preview n°2
Norway and Morocco face the hardest task demanded of any two teams in the World Cup when they meet here on Wednesday evening.
They will take the field knowing that in the eyes of the world their confrontation will be seen as nothing more than an anti-climax follwing the razamatazz which will have marked the opening match between Brazil and Scotland a few hours earlier.
Yet the match is the crucial encounter in Group A – and one which features two nations who should not be written off so dismissively as mere rank outsiders. On current form both sides are more than capable of wresting second place in the group – and a place in the second round – from Scotland, Brazil already being considered as good as in the next phase.
Yet the Brazilians will not easily forget the surprise humiliation they suffered a year ago at the hands of Norway, a rare 4-2 defeat which still rankles. And considering the Norwegians are on the crest of a current 14-match unbeaten streak since they qualified, including recent crushing victories over World Cup qualifiers Saudi Arabia (6-0) and Mexico (5-2), they have to be taken seriously.
Just as Morocco have steadily come through a recent series of friendlies, culminating in a game in Avignon at the weekend against Chile, in which they were denied victory due to a last-minute equaliser by the dynamic Maurizio Salas. They may have lost tamely 1-0 to England in Casablanca but then gamely held France – one of the tournament’s favourites, even if only down to home advantage – to a 2-2 draw and went on to win 6-5 on penalties, a result which was particularly to the taste of manager Henri Michel, once in charge of France himself.
Morocco have long been dubbed the Brazilians of North Africa, having produced a string of gifted players over the years who went on to make reasonable careers in the European leagues, without ever really shining, the latest of whom, Mustapha Hadji of Spanish side Deportivo La Corunna, scored their goal against Chile at the weekend. And with Salaheddine Bassir, the leading scorer in the qualifying campaign, Hadji could pose problems for the Norwegeians’ rigid back four, who often look rooted to the spot.
The Norwegians could yet prove to be the tournament’s surprise package, as they are fully aware that they have the capacity to beat Morocco and may yet be the latest of the ‘underdogs’ to dog Scotland, just like Zaire, Peru, Iran and Costa Rica before them. Their recent record speaks for itself and the strength in depth of the squad is surprising for so small a Nordic nation, as Norwegian exports to the rest of Europe, particularly the English Premiership, have been a major source of national pride.
Indeed, the competiton for places in the starting line-up is stronger than in many better-endowed squads, which may be largely due to the demands manager Egil Olsen makes on his players by sticking to a relelntless 4-5-1 formation. That allows him the luxury to play world-class strikers like Ole-Gunnar Soljaer and Tore-Andre Flo in deep positions and also means that there is frequently no place up front for the imposing Egil Ostenstad. And the defence is regimented by the dependable Henning Berg and Gunnar Halle, while the midfield seems to revolve happily around English-based Oyvind Leonhardsen and Josten Flo.
Manager Olsen wisely cautions: ‘Morocco are a much better team than people give them credit for. ‘ But for all that, there seems to be a quiet confidence in the Norwegian camp based on form and team-spirit which looks likely to take them to victory.
Ultimately, the outcome of such a finely-balanced clash will doubtless hinge on a classic battle between the delicate skills of the Moroccans and the rugged no-nonsense approach of the Norwegians, but more importantly it will probably give the Scots and the Brazilians even more food for thought than their own earlier encounter will have done.