Samir Al-Murabit, Morocco's midfielder, explained that coach Mohamed Wahbi's talk during halftime of the Canada match gave the team the boost to score the hat-trick against Canada.
The Moroccan team qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup after defeating Canada with a three-goal win in the round of 16.
Al-Murabit said in statements published by the Moroccan Al-Boutola website: "We entered the match well, with a desire to win, but the first half did not go well."
He added, "During halftime, the coach gave us a speech, and we entered the second half well and excelled in scoring three goals."
Strasbourg player continued, "We feel a lot of pride and a lot of happiness. We can't always experience such moments."
He concluded, "The World Cup quarter-finals is something we should enjoy, and I hope we continue in this way."
Morocco defeated Canada, one of the host countries along with the USA and Mexico, to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the second consecutive time.
The Moroccan team will meet France in the quarter-finals, who defeated Paraguay with a goal.
Morocco became the first African team to reach the World Cup quarter-finals twice in a row.
Morocco's hat-trick was scored by Azzedine Ounahi with two goals, and a goal by Sofiane Rahimi in injury time.
