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World Cup: Morocco need to 'clear our heads' for Croatia after 'emotions flared' - Regragui

Morocco coach Walid Regragui has revealed why his players must clear their heads ahead of their World Cup clash against Croatia on Saturday..

The Atlas Lions will have a chance to sign off with a bronze medal when they take on Croatia in the third-place playoff fixture at Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday.

The North African's fairytale run in the global competition was ended by world champions France, who defeated them 2-0 in the semi-finals. Ahead of the clash against the Vatreni, the 47-year-old Regragui has revealed how difficult it was to lose to Les Bleus.

"We need to clear our heads a little bit because when you come out of a semi-final, it's the first time that we had ever played a semi-final in a World Cup and emotions are running high. Emotions were flaring and it was quite difficult for us coming out of this game," Regragui told reporters ahead of the game.

Despite the pain of losing to the world champions, Regragui believes his players understand what is at stake in their final game at the Gulf nation.

"However, my players still have that appetite. They want to finish well and they know that they've still got one game with everything to play for. I think that they have understood what's at stake," added Regragui.

"Obviously finishing third is not the same as finishing fourth and it would be great to take a medal home with us. We want to ensure that we finish well and my players have digested the defeat.

"I think that they have also got their heads around that they are one of the best teams in the world. They were in the semi-finals. So we need to clear are heads and go into this game."

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