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Marrakech – In a press conference at the Mohamed VI Football Complex this Friday morning, Walid Regragui, head coach of the Morocco national team, announced his 27-man squad list for the upcoming friendly matches against Mozambique and Uganda.
The list, notably missing PSG star Achraf Hakimi after his recent injury, is as follows:
Goalkeepers:
Mounir El Kajoui (RS Berkane, Botola Pro)
Yassine Bounou (Al Hilal, Saudi Pro League)
Mehdi Lahrar (Raja Casablanca, Botola Pro)
Defenders:
Noussair Mazraoui (Manchester United, Premier League)
Romain Saïss (Al Sadd, Qatar)
Anass Salah-Eddine (PSV Eindhoven, Eredivisie)
Nayef Aguered (Olympique de Marseille, Ligue 1)
Adam Masina (Torino, Serie A)
Jawad El Yamiq (Al-Najma, Saudi Pro League)
Mohamed Chibi (Pyramids, Egyptian Premier League)
Youssef Belammari (Raja Casablanca, Botola Pro)
Midfielders:
Bilal El Khannous (VfB Stuttgart, Bundesliga)
Ismael Saibari (PSV Eindhoven, Eredivisie)
Oussama Targhaline (Feyenoord, Eredivisie)
Sofyan Amrabat (Real Betis, La Liga)
Neil El Ainaoui (AS Roma, Serie A)
Eliesse Ben Seghir (Bayer Leverkusen, Bundesliga)
Azzedine Ounahi (Girona FC, La Liga)
Forwards:
Brahim Diaz (Real Madrid, La Liga)
Chemsdine Talbi (Sunderland, Premier League)
Youssef En-Nesyri (Fenerbahce, Super Lig)
Hamza Igamane (Lille, Ligue 1)
Ayoub El Kaabi (Olympiakos, Super League Greece)
Sofiane Diop (OGC Nice, Ligue 1)
Soufiane Rahimi (Al Ain FC, UAE Pro League)
Ilias Akhomach (Villareal, La Liga)
Abdessamad Ezzalzouli (Real Betis, La Liga)
A bet on experience
Perhaps the biggest storyline from Regragui’s list is the return of Romain Saiss. The Al-Sadd defender has not featured for Morocco in nearly a year and a half, with his last appearance being in a 2-1 World Cup qualifier win over Zambia on June 7, 2024.
Saiss is undoubtedly an emblematic figure of the Moroccan national team: he captained the Atlas Lions through their historic 2022 World Cup run, among other major competitions, chaining one solid showing after another.
However, at the age of 35, there is room for doubt whether Saiss can still sustain the level of performance he’s once shown for Morocco.
The center-back was sidelined by a severe ankle ligaments injury that kept him out of action for more than four months during the 2024-25 season. Saiss’ lack of game-fitness can also come into question. Since his return-from-loan to Qatari side Al-Sadd, in June 2024, the defender has only accumulated 1,535 minutes of game-time.
For Regragui, however, the bet is that Saiss’ experience will prove valuable for the national team. The former Wolverhampton player is a proven leader on and off the pitch with a lengthy track record of a successful partnership with mainstay center-back Nayef Aguerd.
For the Moroccan head coach, the matter is simple. “You don’t win at the Africa Cup of Nations with young defenders. We need experience at the back,” he bluntly replied to a question about Saiss’ call-up.
The Atlas Lions will be in action against Mozambique on November 14 and Uganda on November 18 at 8 p.m. local time (GMT+1), in what will be the grand reopening of newly renovated Ibn Tatouta Stadium in Tangier.
