Antonio Conté’s comment in 2021 has returned into the limelight after Achraf Hakimi’s penalty miss against South Africa spelled the end of Morocco in the AFCON 2023
Achraf Hakimi was given the responsibility to take a late penalty for Morocco’s Atlas Lions and help restore parity after Evidence Makgopa had given Bafana Bafana a 57th minute lead.
The former Inter man stepped up but got too much on the ball, and it ended up hitting the crossbar and going out of play for just a goalkick.
To worse matter for Morocco, they went on to concede another goal to exit the AFCON with a 2-0 loss to South Africa, who were rge underdogs before kickoff in Yamoussoukro.
The result of the lame decision of the team to allow Achraf Hakimi take the penalty has not gone well as it has now reappeared a statement made by Antonio Conté about Achraf Hakimi and penalties, which suggests even the player should not have taken up the responsibility.
What did Antonio Conté say on Achraf Hakimi’s penalties ?
Antonio Conté was the manager at Inter when Achraf Hakimi spent a season with the Nerazzurri in 2020-21, when they won a first Scudetto in eleven years and he obviously did see enough of him take penalties but was definitely not impressed.
“The important thing is that he doesn’t take penalties.” the Italian said in an interview back in 2021.
“I see it at the end of training when he stops to shoot with his teammates. If it gets to that point in some competitions, everyone has to die before he hits one.” He concluded.
Despite this, PSG Paris Saint-German right-back Achraf Hakimi was allowed by his teammates and Walid Regragui to salvage Morocco’s AFCON status, just five minutes from the end of normal time.
this is one massive detail Morocco should have paid attention to. Unfortunately, they did not and it eventually costed them their AFCON status. The entire team, including the staff have themselves to fault for Achraf Hakimi’s penalty miss.
Morocco exits the AFCON and the conquest in Ethiopia 1976 remains their only AFCON success till date, and even a side that reached the semi finals of the FIFA World Cup could not go past the round of 16 in the AFCON.
