Jordan lose Arab Cup final, face Argentina at World Cup in 6 months | OneFootball

This Thursday, the FIFA Arab Cup was decided, an official tournament contested by national teams from the Middle East, belonging to both Asia and Africa. In an epic finale, Morocco was crowned champion after defeating Jordan 3-2 in extra time.

The last semifinalist in Qatar 2022 fielded an alternate squad and did not feature its main stars, such as Hakimi, Bounou, or Ziyech, with its standout player being its legendary 35-year-old striker, Abderrazak Hamdallah, who scored twice after coming off the bench.

Both teams had their moments, with Morocco taking the lead just 4 minutes into the game thanks to a goal from Oussama Tannane, and Jordan turning it around with a brace from their top scorer, Ali Olwan, in the second half. Near the end of regular time, Hamdallah equalized to send the match into extra time.

At the start of extra time, Jordan scored straight from the kickoff, but the goal was disallowed by VAR. Then, in the 100th minute, the former Al Ittihad striker netted his second goal, allowing Morocco to celebrate and be crowned champions for the second time in its history, following their title in 2012.

For Jordan, this marks the end of a highly positive tournament just six months before the World Cup, where they will face Argentina, as they won five consecutive matches on their way to the final, recording victories against the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Egypt in the group stage, against Iraq in the quarterfinals, and against Saudi Arabia in the semifinals.

For its part, this alternate Morocco squad, which will also be present at the 2026 World Cup, achieved victories against Comoros and Morocco, as well as a draw against Oman in the group stage, and overcame Syria and the United Arab Emirates before this win in the FIFA Arab Cup final against Jordan.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.