{"id":336095,"date":"2026-02-25T08:34:46","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T07:34:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/?p=336095"},"modified":"2026-03-04T10:53:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T09:53:24","slug":"three-options-on-the-table-for-the-lions-of-the-atlas-bench","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/three-options-on-the-table-for-the-lions-of-the-atlas-bench\/","title":{"rendered":"Three options on the table for the Lions of the Atlas bench"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In recent hours, the saga surrounding the Lions of the Atlas bench has taken on a new dimension: three profiles are being persistently mentioned in discussions and media echoes: Herv\u00e9 Renard, Xavi Hern\u00e1ndez, and Tarik Sektioui. Between international experience, tactical prestige, and local success, these options outline three very different visions for the future of the national team.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Herv\u00e9 Renard, the &#8220;return&#8221; option that excites part of the public<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Having already been at the helm of Morocco (2016\u20132019), Herv\u00e9 Renard remains associated with a foundational cycle, one that laid the groundwork for the modern team and brought the Lions of the Atlas back to the 2018 World Cup. In recent days, the French coach has once again made headlines by expressing his attachment to Morocco, a discourse perceived as genuine &#8220;signals&#8221; by some observers.<\/p>\n<p>In public opinion, Renard embodies a simple promise: knowledge of the context, selection management, and the ability to achieve results in short competitions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Xavi, the &#8220;prestige&#8221; rumor from Spain<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The other name that has set the internet ablaze is Xavi Hern\u00e1ndez. In Spain, Marca has reported the idea of Xavi being seen as a top candidate for a &#8220;World Cup&#8221; project, which immediately gave the rumor international resonance.<\/p>\n<p>On paper, the profile is clear: a global figure, a coach associated with a style of play and a very high level of expectation. However, for now, we are indeed talking about a media scenario and not a confirmed announcement.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tarik Sektioui, the &#8220;Moroccan plan&#8221; backed by recent achievements<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Finally, the most &#8220;local&#8221; option but also the most solid in sporting terms over the last 18 months is Tarik Sektioui. At the helm of the Olympic team and the A\u2019 team, he has built a rare legitimacy:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bronze medal with Morocco at the Paris 2024 Olympics<\/li>\n<li>Championship win at the CHAN (Morocco&#8217;s third title)<\/li>\n<li>Victory in the Arab Cup: Morocco won the 2025 final against Jordan.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This trajectory fuels the idea of a &#8220;made in Morocco&#8221; continuity: a coach already integrated into the system, accustomed to working with the depth of the local squad, and capable of delivering quickly in tournaments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In recent hours, the saga surrounding the Lions of the Atlas bench has taken on a new dimension: three profiles are being persistently mentioned in discussions and media echoes: Herv\u00e9 Renard, Xavi Hern\u00e1ndez, and Tarik Sektioui. Between international experience, tactical prestige, and local success, these options outline three very different visions for the future of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":336096,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[694,1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-336095","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-team-1-m","8":"category-non-classifiee"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336095","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336095"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336095\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":336277,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336095\/revisions\/336277"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountakhab.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}