Captain of Morocco, Ghizlane Chebbak offered victory to his team in the opening match of the African Cup of Nations at home (CAN 2022), on July 2 in Rabat. A special moment for the midfielder, daughter of ex-star Larbi Chebbak, winner of the 1976 CAN with the Atlas Lions.
From our special correspondent in Rabat,
His direct free kick against Burkina Faso, the first goal of this CAN 2022 female, released the Morocco team. It was followed by a celebration where Ghizlane Chebbak pretended to faint, before being buried under her partners, blissful with happiness. Two days later, the captain of the Lionesses of the Atlas, hilarious, nevertheless assures that there was nothing to calculate in this celebration: “ I had agreed with one of my teammates. If I scored a goal, I was going to go to her. At first I would run to the stand to see my mother and then I remembered my teammate. »
“I have to wear this African cup to be like my father”
For the 31-year-old player, scoring in front of nearly 30,000 spectators, during a final phase of the African Cup of Nations, armband on her arm, is necessarily special. She is indeed the daughter of Larbi Chebbak, one of the legendary winners of the CAN 1976, Morocco’s only title in this competition. The former midfielder died in January 2020. “ I always think of my father and his advice, because he was always my first supporterunderlines the resident of AS FAR, the number 1 club in the country in women’s football. On the day of the opening match, I experienced things I had never experienced before: a stadium full of supporters, football lovers. Most people know my father. So I did my best to pay tribute to him and make my country proud. I am living a dream and to achieve it, I have to wear this African cup, to be, like my father, among the first to win this title in Morocco “.
Reynald Pedros, coach of this Moroccan women’s team, does not like to highlight a player. But he makes a small exception for his relay with the group. ” Our captain is an example, he is our guide, he is a player who is hungry for victories “, underlines the Frenchman. As a good leader, Ghizlane Chebbak thus rounds up his partners before a match against Uganda which can qualify them for the quarter-finals of this CAN 2022: “ The celebrations are over. We know that the next meeting will be difficult. We are playing against a team that has lost its first match [0-2 contre le Sénégal, Ndlr], who will give his all to win. We will do everything to get the 3 points, we have to be focused. »
CAN 2022 women: calendar, rankings and results