Soccer Football - International Friendly - Morocco v Peru - Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - March 28, 2023 Morocco coach Walid Regragui with players after the match REUTERS/Susana Vera/ File Photo
(Reuters) - Morocco coach Walid Regragui has opted for a mixture of youth and experience in his 27-man squad for the African Cup of Nations finals which start next month in the Ivory Coast.
Fourteen of the players on the list were at the 2022 Qatar World Cup where Morocco finished fourth.
Burnley winger Anass Zaroury was left out but other young talents, including PSV Eindhoven's Ismael Saibari, 22, and Real Betis defender Chadi Riad, 20, were included.
"We have a well-balanced group made up of experienced players and talented youth whom we are preparing for the future of the national team," Regragui told a press conference.
Morocco have only won the tournament once, in 1976, but are among the favourites to lift the trophy this time.
"Being underdogs at the World Cup and a favourite at the CAN is an asset. We've acquired a new status not only in Africa but also at the global level, with a place in the top 15," he added.
"Players have to adapt to this new status. It is always nice to be a team that is feared and it is a status we need to get used to as we aim to become a nation that ranks among the favourites."
Morocco are in Group F with Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and Tanzania.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Yassin Bounou (Al-Hilal), Munir El Kajoui (Al-Wehda), and El Mehdi Benabid (AS FAR).
Defenders: Achraf Hakimi (Paris St Germain ), Mohamed Chibi (Pyramids), Abdelkabir Abqar (Alaves), Nayef Aguerd (West Ham United), Romain Saiss (Al-Shabab), Yunis Abdelhamid (Stade de Reims), Chadi Riad (Real Betis), Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich), Yahya Attiat-Allah (Wydad Casablanca).
Midfielders: Selim Amallah (Valencia), Amir Richardson (Reims), Oussama El Azzouzi (Bologna), Sofyan Amrabat (Manchester United), Azzedine Ounahi (Olympique de Marseille), and Bilal El Khannouss (KRC Genk).
Forwards: Hakim Ziyech (Galatasaray), Ismael Saibari (PSV Eindhoven), Amine Adli (Bayer Leverkusen), Ayoub El Kaabi (Olympiakos), Youssef En-Nesyri (Sevilla), Tarik Tissoudali (KAA Gante), Amine Harit (Marseille), Abdessamad Ezzalzouli (Betis), and Sofiane Boufal (Al-Rayyan)
(Reporting by Shifa Jahan in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
