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Morocco’s Abdessalam Ezzalzouli took to Instagram today and posted a story featuring him in a Moroccan jersey with the caption “soon.”
Ezzalzouli’s story hints that he is likely to take part in Morocco’s Atlas Lions’ much-anticipated World Cup playoffs against the Democratic Republic of Congo later this month.
The news comes after months of embroiling debates about whether Ezzalzouli would choose to play for Morocco or Spain.
The Barcelona rising star has reportedly been subject to intense pressure from the Spanish Football Federation to play for La Roja, Spain’s national football team.
Ezzalzouli declined Morocco’s invitation to join the Moroccan team for the recent African Cup of Nations (AFCON).
And as the Barcelona winger made headlines in Morocco for suggesting he wanted to focus on his Club career, Spanish news outlets interpreted Ezzalzouli’s AFCON move as meaning that he wished to play for Spain instead and not Morocco.
Posting the story on Instagram is a good sign that the Moroccan star has made his decision to choose Morocco over Spain.
In an interview with Moroccan radio Mars ahead of the latest AFCON in January, the President of the Moroccan Football Royal Federation (FRMF) Fouzi Lekjaa dismissed reports that Ezzalzouli’s declining of Morocco’s AFCON offer meant he had decided to play for Spain.
Lekjaa noted he had spoken with the Barcelona winger, who he said assured him he had not yet made his decision about whether or not to play for Morocco’s Atlas Lions. Contrary to widely circulated reports that Ezzalzouli wished to play for Spain instead of Morocco, the FRMF president suggested, the Barcelona winger simply asked for more time to decide about his international career.
Has the time finally come for Ezzalzouli to pick a side in the “Spain or Morocco” debate and join the Atlas Lions squad from now on? This decision is something that Morocco’s Bosnian coach Vahid Hlilhodzic’s squad list will reveal in the coming days.
Morocco’s Atlas Lions will play the first leg of their World Cup playoffs against DR Congo on March 25 at 4 p.m (Morocco time) at the Martyrs Stadium in Kinshasa, the Congolese capital. The second leg will take place at 8:30 p.m on March 29 at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca.
