Bounou: Unbelievable! Morocco thought we could go to World Cup final ahead of France
- Morocco's journey ended in the semis against France
- Morocco became first African team to reach semis
- Bounou maintains the Atlas Lions deserve praise
WHAT HAPPENED: The Atlas Lions' fairytale run in the global competition was ended by the world champions after goals from Theo Hernandez and substitute Randal Kolo Muani did the trick at Al Bayt Stadium.
The 31-year-old Sevilla custodian has discussed the defeat insisting they were already looking forward to playing in the final on Sunday.
WHAT HE SAID: "It's an incredible championship. The game was not bad. We played a great game. The first goal made the game difficult for us. The whole team is to be congratulated for the game," Bounou told TVE as quoted by BeSoccer.
"We are very proud. Now we have to prepare for the last match against Croatia. It was unbelievable. We thought we could go to the final, but it wasn't to be. You have to be grateful. We gave everything and I'm happy to belong to this group.
"They took advantage of the little they had to make a difference."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Morocco became the first African team to play in the semi-finals of the global competition after defeating Portugal 1-0 in the quarter-finals.
The North African posted a good run, finishing their group stage matches unbeaten, and then went ahead to defeat Spain 3-0 on penalties in the Round of 16.
WHAT NEXT: They will come up against Croatia in the third-place playoff fixture at Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday.