Morocco's Strategic Adjustments for the World Cup
The Moroccan national football team is placing its hopes on the duo of Marwan Saadan and Amin Al-Sebai to fill the unexpected and shocking void left by their compatriots, Naif Akrd of Olympique Marseille and Abdessamad Al-Zalzouli, the star of Real Betis, who will miss the 2026 World Cup due to injury. The absence of Akrd and Al-Zalzouli has been officially confirmed, as their names have been removed from the official roster approved by FIFA, which has also ratified the inclusion of Saadan and Al-Sebai in their place.
Player Profiles and Recent Performances
According to the Moroccan newspaper "Al-Montakhab," national coach Mohamed Wahbi has decided to select Al-Sebai to replace Al-Zalzouli, while Saadan will take over Akrd's position. Al-Sebai, a 25-year-old left winger, had a notable season last year with the French team Angers, where he participated in 27 matches across all competitions, scoring four goals and providing one assist in a total of 2014 minutes, as reported by the well-known site "Transfermarkt." He joined Angers in the summer of 2025 as a free transfer after his contract with his previous club, Al-Fateh Saudi, ended.
Al-Sebai is considered a new face in the Moroccan squad, having been called up by coach Wahbi for two recent friendly matches. He featured in games against Burundi (5-0) and Madagascar (4-0) on May 26 and June 2, respectively, providing two assists in the former match. He was an unused substitute in a friendly against Norway last Sunday, which ended in a 1-1 draw.
On the other hand, Saadan, at 34 years of age, made his debut for the Moroccan national team in 2015 under coach Badou Zaki, but he has not been a regular feature in the squad. Since his debut, Saadan has appeared in only 17 matches, most notably during the 2025 Arab Cup held in Doha, where Morocco emerged victorious. Last season, Saadan, who plays as a center-back, represented his club Al-Fateh Saudi in 32 matches across all competitions, contributing one goal.
The World Cup draw has placed Morocco in Group C alongside record-holders Brazil, Haiti, and Scotland. The Moroccan team, which finished fourth in the last edition, will kick off its 2026 World Cup campaign with a highly anticipated match against Brazil next Sunday at 1:00 AM Mecca and Doha time.
As reported by aljazeera.net.
