Saibari is happy to shine under Guardiola’s eye. it is an honor for him to watch our match

Morocco striker Ismail Saibari deservedly won the Man of the Match award after scoring a quick-fire goal to lead the Atlas Lions to a 1-0 win over Scotland in the ongoing FIFA 2026 campaign.

Saibari scored just 69 seconds into the game, setting a new record as the fastest Arab goal in World Cup history, becoming the first Moroccan and second African to score in his first two games at the tournament since Egypt’s Mohamed Salah in 2018.

The player, who is close to a move to Bayern Munich, not only scored an early goal but on more than one occasion almost doubled the lead had it not been for the crossbar of one of his dangerous attempts.

Saibari said about his remarkable brilliance in the statement of the Spanish “Marca” newspaper. “It’s up to the fans and the media to decide if I’m the star of the World Cup or not. I’m just trying to help the team in my job.”

The Moroccan striker’s performances have come under the watchful eye of former Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, who was in attendance from the stands, amid speculation he will return to coaching soon.

Saibari commented on the presence of the Spanish coach. “It’s an honor for me to have him watch our match.”

“We are happy for the victory and could have scored more goals. It’s a team effort and building attacks was good and Ibrahim’s decisive pass for the first goal was great.”

He concluded. “If we had scored the second goal, we would have played more comfortably, but we fought hard in the last ten minutes and achieved a well-deserved victory.”