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The maestro’s journey from the Mohammed VI academy to a dazzling world
The spectacle at the stadium in the 2026 World Cup round of 16 against Morocco and Canada was not only a celebration of new qualification for the Atlas Lions, but also the culmination of a journey for a player whose story encapsulated an entire football project.
When Ezzedine Ounahi lifted the man of the match award with a historic brace and a brilliant performance to take his country to the quarter-finals, he was not only celebrating an exceptionally personal night, but also sending a new message to anyone who thought his performance at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar was just a passing glimpse.
Four years ago, Luis Enrique asked the world in amazement. “Where is this player from?” Today, the question is no longer asked, because the answer is known to everyone. Ounahi graduated from Morocco’s modern soccer school, the Mohamed VI Academy, but he reached the top, going through a path full of rejections, injuries, disappointments and admitting mistakes, before he returned more mature to become one of the most iconic symbols of Morocco’s golden generation.
Historical project
It is difficult to understand the story of Ounahi apart from the project that changed the face of Moroccan football in the last decade.
After years of relying on natural talent, Morocco decided to invest in the development of the player, and the Mohamed VI Academy became the cornerstone of this transformation, as the work is not limited to the development of technical skills, but extends to character, discipline, tactical culture and physical and psychological preparation.
In the midst of this project, the boy from Casablanca emerged with another talent. He was neither the fastest nor the strongest physically, but he had what any manager looks for in a modern midfielder. Wide vision, a smooth first touch and a rare ability to escape pressure from the opposition, in addition to a calm personality unaffected by the hustle and bustle of games.
At the academy, Onahi learned that intelligence can beat strength and that making the right decision at the right moment is more important than running around aimlessly, a philosophy that would later guide him throughout his career.
Read more about Mohammed VI Academy From here
When the European dream closed its doors
Like thousands of Moroccan players, turning professional in Europe was the natural next step.
Onahi moved to Strasbourg, France, believing that the path to the French league was paved, but the reality is completely different.
He featured with the reserves, while many saw his physique as not up to the demands of European football, then the situation was complicated by the Corona epidemic, before he suffered the biggest blow by not getting a professional contract.
It was a moment that could have ended the dreams of many players, but Onahi refused to give up.
Instead of returning to Morocco or looking for an easier way out, he took on a new challenge, moving to Avranches in France’s third division, away from the cameras, with small stadiums and limited public attendance, where his true personality began to emerge.
His coaches at Avranches later spoke of a player who arrived frustrated but was the first to attend training and the last to leave, believing his talent would one day prove itself no matter how long they waited.
Just two years…from the third level to the world pyramid
Ounah did not need many years to prove himself. After one season with Avranches, he convinced Angers to sign him, and there the world began to discover a different player in midfield, one who was not content with cutting or playing balls, but rather combined both tasks with rare fluency.
But the real explosion happened in Qatar.
Onahi entered the 2022 World Cup without much media fanfare and emerged as one of the tournament’s most celebrated discoveries after playing a major role in Morocco’s historic run to the semi-finals, the first Arab and African team to reach the stage.
The Spain game came to change his life completely.
Onahi controlled the midfield, managed to repeatedly break the Spanish pressure and ran non-stop throughout the match, until he prompted Luis Enrique to issue his famous post-match remark: “Oh my god… where is this player from?”
Then he added: “We know Ziech, Amrabat and En-Nesir, but this guy was amazing.”
These weren’t just words from a press conference, but the testimony of one of the best coaches in the world, who took Onah from an unknown player to the list of the most wanted names in the transfer market.
The top is harder to reach
If the Qatar championship confirmed Onahi’s international name, the following years proved that maintaining the height is much more difficult than achieving it.
He moved to Olympique Marseille amid huge expectations after the French club settled the deal for eight million euros despite competition from Napoli and Leeds United, but the reality was not what everyone expected.
Coaches changed, technical concepts differed, the player suffered repeated injuries and also went through personal circumstances that affected his level until his brilliance began to fade little by little.
It is noteworthy that Onahi did not look for excuses, but confessed to himself, saying: “I didn’t work hard enough. The season was complicated due to injury and some personal circumstances, but I bear all the responsibility. I don’t want to repeat the same mistakes, and I came back with a different mindset.”
That confession revealed an important aspect of his personality. A player who would rather face the truth than run from it.
Girona… when he reappeared
When he moved to Girona, many believed his career was headed in the wrong direction, especially with the team struggling for survival.
But Coach Mitchell saw something else.
Given complete freedom on the pitch, Onahi returned to his best form and became one of the most popular midfielders in the Spanish league despite the team’s relegation, leading the statistics in terms of dribbles, line-break passes, chance creation and passing the ball forward under pressure.
Mitchell summed it up by saying: “He is an exceptional ball player and very smart tactically.”
As for Onahi, he admitted that Girona was the project he needed to regain his confidence, stressing that he came to the club because it suited his style of play and gave him the freedom he missed.
Vehbe’s confidence
Despite falling out of the media spotlight, Mohamed Webe has not lost faith in a midfielder who knows his worth.
With the emergence of new names such as Nael El Ainoui and Bouadi, many believed that Ounahi’s place in the starting line-up was under threat, but the Moroccan coach saw the picture differently.
He clearly said. “Ounahi is a master of rhythm. When he is at his best, Morocco becomes a different team.”
These words were not just a compliment, but were reflected on the field.
Onahi kept his place in the starting line-up for almost the entire tournament before the match that brought his name back to the forefront of world football.
The Maestro is back!
Against Canada, it didn’t take long for Onahi to confirm that he was back.
He moved freely between the lines, broke the Canadians’ pressure, created spaces and dictated the pace of the match from the opening minutes before scoring two impressive goals to lead Morocco to a 3-0 victory and a deserved quarter-final berth.
He touched the ball 65 times, won six fights, dribbled successfully, led 14 starts with the ball and became the key to the game of the first selection of the Moroccan national team.
With his brace, he became the fourth African player to score twice in a World Cup qualifier, the third Moroccan to achieve the feat in World Cup history and the first player from Girona to score at the World Cup.
When he stood up to receive the man of the match award after the game, he didn’t talk about himself. “I’m glad we made our fans happy and I’m proud to belong to this generation.”
Spherical novel
Footballers may score more goals than Azedine Ounahi, and others may win more titles, but there are few whose careers turn into a mirror of an entire football project.
Onahi’s story is not one of a fluke of talent, but rather a story of a country that invested in academies, believed in training and nurtured his talents until he became competitive with the world’s greatest soccer schools.
From the streets of Casablanca to the Mohamed VI Academy, through the stadiums of France’s third division, then the question of Qatar’s famous Luis Enrique, to the Canadian night where he led Morocco to the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the second time in a row, Onahi’s journey is closer to a football novel than a player’s biography.
Therefore, Azedine Ounahi is no longer the star of the Moroccan national team, but has become one of the most successful proofs that the “Moroccan industry” is no longer a media slogan, but a reality that creates stars who write history with their feet and assure the world that glory begins with a project that believes in the future before believing in results.
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