Motherly love does the magic for lion-hearted Morocco stars in Qatar

The Morocco fairytale has been the biggest story to emerge out of the FIFA World Cup 2022. The Atlas Lions have put on sensational displays to defy the odds and become the first African side to reach the semi-final stage of the premier football spectacle.

Sturdy defence, counter-attacks at break-neck speed, and a never-say-die spirit have been the main ingredients of Morocco's success recipe at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. So are the thousands of passionate fans who have travelled to the World Cup and the families of the players who have accompanied the stars.

A familiar sight after Morocco matches in Qatar has been the players dancing around with their mothers and other members of the family. Sofiane Boufal dancing with his mother after Qatar knocked out Portugal is certainly going to be one of the visuals of the World Cup. The passionate Moroccan fans cheered on the mother-son duo as the two held hands and danced in circles.

Paris Saint-Germain star Achraf Hakimi was also seen posting photos with his mother after Morocco knocked out Spain on penalties. Even coach Walid Regragui has been celebrating with his mother, who is a constant presence in the stands during the World Cup.

Explaining the logic behind travelling with families to the World Cup, Regragui said it was part of the strategy to improve their performances and help handle the pressure in big matches.

"We represent Morocco, so we have an image that we have to spread around the world. And because the World Cup is the best shop window, if you like, we want to show our players and how close they are to their families. That's part of our culture, it's where we're from," Regragui said, as quoted by the news agency AP.

"We thought about this with the staff and we thought about details like bringing in our family members to try to build team spirit and that helped us go far in this tournament," he added.

Midfielder Ilias Chair highlighted how inspiring it has been to have parents and families with the players in Qatar, saying the players have been relishing the heartwarming post-match scenes in the camp.

"My parents and my wife have come, and I think all the other players have their parents and family members here as well," he said Tuesday.

"And that has given us great strength, and I hope it continues that way, because if you look at the films, at the videos after the game of players with their parents, it's fantastic. And you see people with tears in their eyes," Chair said.

Morocco will take on France in the second semi-final of the World Cup on Wednesday and the Atlas Lions will hope that there are happy tears in the faces of the famly members, a couple more times in their campaign in Qatar.