Moroccan Striker Hamdallah Responds to National Team Snub with Stellar Performance

When will Hamdallah return to the national team? Many would be hard pressed to answer this question. Many thought he would be on the list of players called up by the new coach for the matches against Chile (September 23) and Paraguay (September 27). But Walid Regragui preferred to do without the Ittihad Jeddah player, justifying his decision by "the player’s lack of competition who was suspended for 4 months before the lifting of his sanction". However, he indicated that the door of the team was open to the player.

But the player seems to have kept his competitive spirit and his performance intact within the Saudi championship where he plays. This is what he proved by scoring two goals in his team’s last match against the Al Khalij club. Questioned at the end of the match on the statements of the Moroccan coach, he said he was unaware of what he had said about him and that the door of the selection was open to all players and not only to Hamdallah.

It must be said that the former player of Olympique de Safi has always had complicated relations with the coaches who have been in charge of the national team. We still remember the outburst of anger he had provoked in Vahid Halilhodzic by refusing to play for the national team, while a few days before this refusal, he had made calls for help to return to the selection, stressing the importance it holds for him to wear the national jersey.

On June 12, 2019, he wore the Atlas Lions jersey for the last time. It was at the Grand Stadium in Marrakech, during a friendly match against Gambia (0-1). He left the gathering place, renouncing the 2019 CAN, being very upset against his teammate Fayçal Fajr who had taken the ball from his hands when he was about to take a penalty.