With just turned 32 (on April 5), and with a Spanish with a clearly Argentine accent (“I learned it when I went through Atlético Madrid B, and there were several with whom I shared hours of music and TV from their country”), the goalkeeper of the Moroccan team Yassine Bounou -better known as “Bono”- spoke with infobae about the great moment that football in his country is experiencing after fourth place in the last World Cup, about his love for River Plate and especially for his idol Ariel Ortega.
-What a great moment that Moroccan football is experiencing, right?
-Luckily, yes. The fourth place in the World Cup in Qatar was very important because it was a historical fact, because never before had an African team reached the semifinals in a World Cup, and because I think that from now on it has been shown that this can be turned to repeat and that we are capable of having achieved it.
What was the formula for success?
I don’t think there’s just one. It is the success of the great work we did with our coach, (Walid) Regragui. There were very good players who luckily are in the best teams in the world, although sometimes things happen in a certain way, as happened to us on penalties against Spain in the round of 16.
-They got very good results against teams of a very good level.
-Yes, it is no coincidence that we tied Croatia, we beat Belgium, we eliminated Spain and Portugal… but now the World Cup is over and we beat Brazil and tied with Peru, two results that indicate that we are still on the right track. correct road.
-You have been in the Moroccan team for a decade but it was even said that you were able to play in Canada because you were born there. It was like this?
-Yes, that’s right, although when I was very young I returned to live with my parents in Morocco because they were born there. And in fact, I made my debut at Wydad Casablanca at the age of 19, but I am Moroccan at heart and that is why I never considered anything other than playing for this team.
-He was in the shortlist of goalkeepers for the FIFA “The Best” awards at the recent gala in February in Paris. What does this represent for you?
-A pride and recognition of what I have been working on for years in football, with a long career and that, like so many people, I had to go through many circumstances and several teams until I was able to consolidate myself. I had many satisfactions such as winning a Zamora award (in 2022) as the least defeated of the season at Sevilla, or being champion of the Europa League against Manchester United (in 2020), or being one of the two goalkeepers with the most assists in the 21st century together with Dudú Aouate (Israeli).
-You mention many moments of your career, but how much impact does the World Cup have on the prize?
-I don’t know, but it is clear that a World Cup is very important and conditions, but it is logical that this happens.
-Did you think it was fair that the prize was won by Emiliano Martínez?
-Yes, of course, he is a great goalkeeper and he was decisive, without a doubt.
-Some questioned that he was not in the FIFA Ideal XI of 2022 and that (Thibaut) Courtois would occupy that place.
-In the end, they are prizes, they are events, it is like that and that’s it. You don’t have to look elsewhere either. What is certain is that the players who appear in the Ideal XI are very great and deserve it.
-You became a hero for your people during the World Cup, but especially when you saved two penalties against Spain in the round of 16, against Carlos Soler and Sergio Busquets, and helped Morocco qualify for the quarterfinals.
-Yes, that was a huge joy and also, we feel local because of so much support that we have received from our people and from the Qataris. The celebration was impressive and unforgettable.
-In that match against Spain, you went back but each counterattack seemed like a goal.
-Yes, we won it in the best style of Cholo Simeone (laughs).
-During the World Cup, you received Ariel Ortega’s shirt as a gift, dedicated by him. What can you give us?
-Yes, he is my idol since I was a child and he knows it. We were able to talk about it on social media. My dog is named “Ariel” after him. I was very excited when I received the “Orteguita” shirt and he sent me a video message.
-And how is it that Ortega became your idol?
-It’s that I’ve been a fan of River since I was very young, since my father gave me a shirt from the Argentine team, which was my first soccer shirt and from that moment I always liked Argentina and I love Argentines and especially, River fans. I was never able to visit the Monumental but I was in the 2018 Copa Libertadores final at the Santiago Bernabéu and I went to Japan to see it against Barcelona in the Club World Cup in 2015.
-Is it true that you almost missed going to the Bernabeu in 2018?
-Yes it’s true. I was playing for Girona at that time and I got injured against Atlético Madrid and at the end of the game, I approached (Germán) Burgos to ask him if he had tickets for that final and he told me “you’re a son of a bitch… you got injured on purpose”, but no, it was seriously the injury. The ticket ended up getting me (Leandro) Chichizola, who was at Getafe and is a friend of mine.
-Would you play in River?
-I would love to play there sometime, but you never know. I hope it happens. I love that atmosphere, what they sing, how they live.
Keep reading:
