REUTERS/Jon Nazca
While Morocco won't be getting the World Cup in 2026, on Sunday, they got a glimpse of global superstars Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho as the Spanish Super Cup came to the Stade Ibn Batouta in Tangier.
Sevilla made life difficult for Barcelona, opening the scoring after Luis Muriel broke with pace before laying the ball off to Pablo Sarabia who finished emphatically into the bottom left corner.
Pablo Machin had Sevilla well-drilled and unlikely to suffer the same humiliating capitulations as predecessor Vincenzo Montella. This was a lot closer to the 5-0 drubbing they suffered last time they met in last season's Copa del Rey final.
But they couldn't keep Messi quiet. He was lively throughout and it was his free-kick that eventually fell to Gerard Pique for the equaliser. He also laid the ball off for Ousmane Dembele for the winner but the goal was all the Frenchman's: a fierce shot from outside the area and a worthy winner for any final.
Sevilla had a late chance to take the game to extra-time as Marc Andre Ter-Stegen took down former Barcelona man Aleix Vidal in injury time but he made amends when he saved the resultant penalty. Wissam Ben Yedder's effort was tame and telegraphed.
Here are five things we learned: