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A source close to the Moroccan national team’s technical staff confirmed that the Atlas Lions coach, Walid Regragui, took into account that any player would be injured before appearing in the new version of the African Cup of Nations.
The source reported that this was the reason for Regragui sending the expanded Moroccan national team list to Cannes, which included 50 players.
He pointed out that Regragui had put all scenarios in place for the possibility of the absence of any of his main players, including Nassir Mazraoui, whose absence from the club was confirmed by German reports, after he suffered a calf injury during the Champions League match against Manchester United, and his need for a rest period of 6 weeks.
The source explained that Regragui placed between 3 and 4 players in each position, and these options were presented in the left-back position occupied by Mazraoui, the player Adam Masina, a professional player in Udinese, Italy, who participated in the Cameroon 2021 edition, before ligament surgery ruled him out of the World Cup.
He continued: “There is also Yahya Attia Allah, the Wydad player, who participated in the World Cup as a starter in 3 matches, and as a substitute for Mazraoui in the rest, but the surprise was represented by Youssef El Khadim, the emerging Real Madrid player, who recently extended his contract with the Royal team until 2028.”
He concluded: “Ragragui will not despair of accompanying Mazraoui, even if he misses the first matches, and he has also put in place appropriate alternatives to replace him.”
Source: Koura