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Morocco head coach Walid Regragui has shared the reason behind defender Achraf Hakimi’s absence in the team’s opening game of the 2025 AFCON.
The North African nation is hosting the biannual competition and scored a 2-0 win over Comoros in the opening game of the tournament.
However, Paris Saint-Germain’s Hakimi, who was recently named as the 2025 CAF Men’s Best Player, sustained a serious ankle injury in a UEFA Champions League game against Bayern Munich and was rumoured to be fit enough to start against Comoros.
Hakimi didn’t feature in the game and in an interview, Regragui said Morocco is playing the long game with Hakimi’s health.
“Without Hakimi we could have done better, but Mazraoui is fantastic. I place him in the hierarchy as strong as Achraf, even if he has different qualities.”
“We still need Hakimi, he’s one of the best players in Africa and in the world, there’s no team in the world that can’t play without their best player.”
“This style of game would have suited Hakimi today, he would have helped us in wide areas. We didn’t take the risk [to play him]. He already came back faster than planned, but we’re careful because we want him back for the tournament, not just for 20 minutes or for one match” Regragui said according to ESPN.
Morocco next take on Zambia on Friday, December 26 at 20:00 GMT.
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