Morocco coach Walid Regragui had only praise for his team’s efforts after their fairytale run at the World Cup ended in a 2-0 semi-final defeat to France on Wednesday.

“We gave our all, that’s the most important thing. The boys fought until the last minute,” said Regragui, whose team shocked Spain and Portugal in the previous two rounds.

Theo Hernandez put France ahead in the fifth minute of the match and Regragui said that early blow had a huge impact on the match.

“If I have any regrets about this game, it would be mainly conceding that goal quickly — it gave the French team even more certainty to stick with their approach,” he said.

Morocco had progressed through the tournament in Qatar by winning games despite often ceding possession.

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