The quiet godfather of Moroccan football has been watching it all unfold from afar. Nasser Larguet, a thoughtful 64-year-old devoted to developing the game, may not be a globally renowned, but his work has been making waves.
Fourteen years ago, at the request of the King of Morocco, Larguet took on a mission to boost the nation’s football. He already had abundant experience in academies in France, and he set about creating an elite production line for young talent in Morocco.
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When Morocco’s head coach Walid Regragui sends his players out against France in the World Cup semi-final this evening, the roots of that moment date back to the months Larguet spent travelling across the country to find the most promising boys for the Mohammed VI Academy, a complex designed to produce top footballers. He watched 15,000 children between the age of 10-15 in the process, whittling them down to select the first intake.
Larguet, who hails from Sidi Slimane, a small agricultural city in the north of Morocco, is currently technical director of the Saudi Arabia football team. (The more you learn about him, the more obvious it is a nation as ambitious as Saudi would turn to him to lead their own football transformation.) He was with Saudi’s under-15s team at a tournament in Spain when Morocco had their historic win over Portugal to make it into the World Cup semi-finals. He watched the game on television, overcome with emotion like a proud father.
“My heart was beating so strongly,” he says. “To watch this revolution with these players and this coach was extraordinary. They played with great intelligence, a lot of solidarity, and when I saw one of the academy players, Youssef En-Nesyri, score the goal with a fine header, I was the happiest man in the world.”
 Youssef En-Nesyri rises to score for Morocco against Portugal (Photo: Michael Steele via Getty Images)
  Youssef En-Nesyri rises to score for Morocco against Portugal (Photo: Michael Steele via Getty Images)Larguet is the perfect guide to explain how Morocco have reinvented themselves on the national stage. He effectively produced a blueprint for other emerging nations with big ideas. The fundamental requirements are a generous financier, talented and dedicated people to run a serious and carefully constructed programme, and the patience to plant the seeds and nurture them with care until they blossom.
It all began in 2007. “It was for a project inspired by the King of Morocco, his majesty Mohammed VI, who is very interested in sport,” Larguet explains. “He was aware that, unfortunately, Morocco were in a period when they did not often qualify for the African Cup of Nations or the World Cup and reached the conclusion that it was important to focus on the development of players.
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“I was chosen to lead the project. We spent two years constructing the academy. After that, I travelled around the country to find the right players. In 2009, we were ready to open and the first generation arrived for us to get to work to produce players like En-Nesyri, (Azzedine) Ounahi, (Nayef) Aguerd, (Ahmed Reda) Tagnaouti, boys who are now in the national team.”
Certain criteria were essential: educating coaches and facilitators was as vital as helping the young players to grow. Maintaining a high level of schoolwork alongside football work was so important that some students were not selected because their academic ability was too far behind their requirements. Larguet’s philosophy is simple: “To have very good players, you need very good coaches and very good educators.
“We wanted the academy to also include all the parameters needed to develop youngsters on a social level, in education where they continued to study, and of course football. It all happened at the same place. Our objective was truly to give them the best chance in football but also to improve the various youth football stages, under-17, under-20, Olympic team and first team.”
Each intake of boarders for the new academy comes in at the age of 12 and can continue until the age of 18. For the age level before that, Larguet opened four mini-centres for younger players in major hubs around the country, which were in Marrakesh, Casablanca, Fez and Tangier. “We prepare those players from the age of 9-12, to offer regular training, and the best of those graduate to the academy.”
Once the academy was up and running, Larguet convinced Herve Renard to join the project (the coach followed Larguet to Saudi Arabia, where he is head coach of the national team). He earmarked Regragui as a coaching talent and recruited him for the first group to take the CAF’s professional licence. He also scoured Europe for players eligible for Morocco and persuaded many born or living overseas to represent the nation of their family origins.
 Walid Regragui being thrown in the air after Morocco qualified for the knockouts (Photo: Richard Heathcote via Getty Images)
  Walid Regragui being thrown in the air after Morocco qualified for the knockouts (Photo: Richard Heathcote via Getty Images)A phone call to Zinedine Zidane helped smooth the path for Madrid-born Achraf Hakimi to choose Morocco. Sofyan Amrabat, so impressive in this tournament, and Noussair Mazraoui, both born in the Netherlands, also agreed. France-born Sofiane Boufal is another. Larguet’s influence on the current Morocco team is massive.
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He is certain that this World Cup marks an important step in how African teams and coaches are perceived. “The players and the coach have created this respect,” he says. “Everyone can see African teams are going up in the world. It shows African football and the Arab world that nothing is impossible. It is an example to follow.”
Could this programme be a touchstone for other countries? “Yes, of course,” he says. “Some academies are already doing good work, particularly in Senegal, while Ghana and Algeria are improving in that respect. But I do believe the academy in Morocco is ahead of the rest. It is possible to emulate but requires financing to do it.
“Each country has their own particularities. Saudi Arabia is a big country with a great deal of potential and a lot of desire. Their first match in this World Cup against Argentina showed they have quality players. The president of the Federation has a strategy and we recruit people to drive that. They are looking already to the next World Cup and to progress like Morocco.”
Lerguet will be present at Doha to observe his old proteges carrying the flag for their nation, as the world is now intrigued to see how far they can go. “I am extremely proud and very happy for the players and for the coach because he is someone who grew with us to become coach of the national team. He has great qualities. There are players who were in the academy at 12 and are now wearing the colours of Morocco at the World Cup and playing in a semi-final against France.”
Nobody, as the anthem plays in the stadium tonight, will be as proud as the man who kickstarted it all.
Read more: France beat Morocco to reach World Cup final
(Top photo: Francois Nel via Getty Images)
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