It surely takes some nerve for a coach to say his team was better in the game despite losing 3-0. For Canada’s coach Jesse Marsch, he could not be prouder of how his boys played the Round of 16 game against Morocco. However, while Marsch tried his part to keep his boys motivated and positive, his underestimation of Morocco has left former English player Troy Deeney unimpressed.
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“Jesse, whatever he’s drinking in the morning. I want a little bit of that… To say you’d prefer to be Canada and to be Morocco is quite possibly one of the most stupid things I’ve ever heard,” Deeney said via CBS Sports Golazo.
The 2026 World Cup proved to be their best campaign so far, which included a dominant 6-0 win against Qatar in the group stage and a 1-0 win against South Africa to make it to the round of 16. So, Marsch has reason to feel proud. On Saturday against Morocco, the Canadians held their fort in the first half, ending it goalless. However, Morocco opened the floodgates in the second half. Azzedine Ounahi scored the first two for Morocco, followed by Soufiane Rahimi in injury time to make it 3-0.
Talking about his team’s performance, Marsch said, “Of course, we have to be in these situations more and more, and then we have to find ways to succeed, and we have to build from that. I’d rather be us than them. As good as Morocco is, I’d rather be us.”
However, Deeney wasn’t buying it, especially on the back of a 3-0 loss. “They’ve just beaten you first and foremost, and we’re saying how poor Morocco played,” he added.
“I’d rather be us than them?” 🤔@T_Deeney is not buying Jesse Marsch’s post match comments 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/3RwMoYBk0F
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) July 4, 2026
ESPN’s stats showed Morocco had 55% ball possession compared to Canada’s 45%. Morocco had 388 accurate passes compared to Canada’s 272. So, while Canada was surely not outsmarted entirely by Morocco, the latter team was still the dominant one. “In terms of intensity, [Canada] was good,” Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said. “Were they better? It’s hard to say. It takes some nerve to say that when you lose 3-0. We were better than them in the second half.”
Morocco sat back, choked the central passing lanes, and forced Canada into low-probability crosses or long-range efforts. Credit also goes to Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou. Canadian forwards Jonathan David and Tani Oluwaseyi both had clear openings but were denied by Bounou.
Canada showcased their best performance this year, entering the knockout stage. Canadian fans and their coach have every reason to feel proud. But Morocco had the last laugh in the round of 32. In the quarterfinals, they will face Kylian Mbappe’s France, who beat Paraguay 1-0 to advance to the quarterfinals.
