Benhashem: "We Had a Very Difficult Week, I Thank the Players for Everything They Gave Against Azam"

Mohamed Amine Benhashem, head coach of Wydad AC, expressed his immense gratitude to the players and all components of the Red Team following their one-nil victory over Tanzania's Azam FC. The match was part of the second round of the CAF Confederation Cup group stage. Speaking at the post-match press conference, Benhashem confirmed that his team had endured a challenging week due to more than half of the players suffering from "influenza," which made preparations for the encounter extremely complicated.

Benhashem stated, "I would like to thank all the players for their commitment and for everything they gave. Indeed, we went through a very difficult week; more than half of the players were suffering from influenza. Yesterday, one of our players suddenly announced his illness, and today, more than half of the players were also affected by the flu."

"For this reason, I also want to thank all members of the staff, especially the medical team who made great efforts yesterday, the day before yesterday, and even earlier, as well as the administrative staff, the committee, and the technical staff, of course, because the week we went through was truly a bad week," Benhashem added.

He continued, "Regarding the match, first, we set our playing strategies. We know very well that we were facing a team that relies on possession, a team that keeps the ball a lot, and a team that moves a lot on the field. We established our defensive organization, and we started with a high press, looking for counter-attacks."

Benhashem further explained, "Unfortunately, in the first half, there were many errors, especially in passing, which is why we didn't create many chances. In the second half, we also started with a high press, forcing the opponent into making mistakes. Then, we scored the first goal through Amrabat, and after that, we began to manage the time and even the squad by making substitutions."

He concluded, "Praise be to God, as I said at the beginning, I want to thank everyone: the club, all staff members, and all the players. We were very physically exhausted due to what we experienced this week; indeed, physically, we were not at our best, and I expected that. After we scored the goal, I started to manage the time, manage my team, and take out players who were not even able to walk."