Morocco secured a 2–1 victory over Paraguay in an international friendly played on Tuesday at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis in Lens, France, as part of their preparations for the 2026 World Cup.
The Atlas Lions controlled large spells of the match, particularly in the second half, where they translated their dominance into two goals to take the lead and secure the win.
Bilal El Khannouss opened the scoring in the 48th minute, capitalising on an assist from Achraf Hakimi, before Naïl El Aynaoui doubled the lead just five minutes later, again set up by the Moroccan captain. Paraguay managed to pull one goal back, but Morocco held on to seal the victory.
The match follows Morocco’s recent draw against Ecuador in Madrid, as the team continues to fine-tune its squad ahead of the upcoming World Cup.
Head coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who recently took over from Walid Regragui, appears to be pursuing a strategy focused on refreshing the squad, giving opportunities to a number of new or less regular players.
Among the new additions called up for the Ecuador and Paraguay fixtures were defenders Issa Diop, Ismail Baouf and Redouane Halhal, alongside midfielders Mohamed Rabii Hrimat and Samir El Morabet. In attack, Yassine Zoubiri and Yassine Jassim also featured, with the latter delivering a particularly strong performance in this match.
The victory offers an encouraging sign for Morocco as it continues to rebuild and test new combinations ahead of the 2026 tournament.
