Morocco’s National Soccer Team Set for Roster Shake-Up Ahead of CAN Qualifiers

Placed in group B, Morocco will face the Central African Republic on October 12 and 15 during the third and fourth rounds of the qualifiers for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) Morocco, at the sports complex in the city of Oujda. Walid Regragui is preparing to unveil the list of players who will be called up for these two matches. Changes as well as new call-ups are expected to strengthen the team.

Absent from the field for several weeks due to a dispute with the management of AS FAR, who took a disciplinary decision to relegate him to the reserve team and sanction him financially, goalkeeper Mehdi Benabid, could not be called up. The national coach could replace him with the three goalkeepers of the professional football championship, namely the goalkeeper of Wydad Athletic Club, Youssef Moutie, the goalkeeper of Maghreb de Fès, Salaheddine Chihab, as well as the current starting goalkeeper of AS FAR, Ayoub El Khayati, due to the drop in performance of the goalkeeper of Raja, Anas Zniti.

Key players like Brahim Diaz, the Spanish-Moroccan striker of Real Madrid, injured in the adductors during the match of Real Madrid against Real Sociedad, keeping him away from the field for three more weeks, could also be absent. Amine Harit, star of Olympique de Marseille, not called up in the Moroccan team under the Regragui era on several occasions, including the last Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d’Ivoire, could replace him.

Not called up since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Jawad El Yamiq, defender of Al Wahda in Saudi Arabia, is now among the candidates who will make their return to the national team. Regragui could call him up to replace Romain Ghanem Saïss, who lacks competitiveness, and Chadi Riad, injured.

Positioning a better player at left-back remains the concern of the national coach. Regragui could call on the Bayern Munich prodigy Adam Aznou, the KRC Genk player Zakaria El Ouahdi, and the left-back of Al Ahly, Yahya Attiat-Allah. However, it is not excluded that he will call up the Moroccan right-back of PSG Achraf Hakimi. The latter played as a left-back in the last match against Gabon.

Regularly called up, goalkeepers Yassine Bounou and Munir El Kajoui, defenders Nayef Aguerd and Younes Abdelhamid, midfielders Sofyan Amrabat and Amir Richardson, and forwards Youssef En-Nesyri, Sofiane Rahimi and Ayoub El Kaabi will certainly be on the next list.

The selected players will participate in a closed-door training camp at the Mohammed VI Football Center in Rabat, starting October 7. They will then go to Saïdia to finalize the preparations for the two matches against the Central African Republic.