The Royal Moroccan Football Federation unveiled on Friday the list of players summoned for the U23 double friendly confrontation with Brazil (September 7 and 11 in Fez). The list includes around ten new names, including the Atletico Madrid duo Raïhani-El Jebari and the RC Lens attacking midfielder Neil El Aynaoui.
African champions a few weeks ago, the Atlas Lion Cubs U23 face Brazil on two occasions (September 7 and 11) at the Fez Sports Complex. For this double meeting against Canarinha, national coach Issame Charaï called on 28 players to begin preparation for the Olympic Games, Paris 2024 .
No less than ten players are making their debut under the colors of the U23 selection. Walid Hasbi (Strasbourg), Abdellah Raïhani, Salim El Jebari (Atletico Madrid), Aïmen Moueffek (Saint-Étienne), Brahim El Kadiri (Volendam), Ayman Azhil (B. Dortmund), Achraf Laaziri (O. Lyon), Mohamed Jaouab (Rennes), Diyae Eddine Jermoumi (Ajax Amsterdam) and Neil El Aynaoui (RC Lens) .
The latter is one of the most anticipated players, since he is none other than the son of the national tennis legend, Younes El Aynaoui , in addition to being one of the great prospects of Moroccan football. The Atletico Madrid duo, Abdellah Raïhani and Salim El Jebari , are also eagerly awaited, especially Raïhani who was called up for the U23 CAN , but who was unable to join his teammates due to a blockage from his club . Stade Rennes defender Mohamed Jaouab is seen by many as “the new Aguerd” and could be an important defensive asset.
In addition to the opportunity to face the gold medalist selection during the last two editions, even if the squad has completely changed, the planned matches represent a confrontation of choice for the Lion Cubs of the Atlas who, despite the title won in Rabat, still need time to gain maximum experience and continue the work of building a homogeneous group. Issame Charaï has a plethoric squad, even if five team starters are called up by Walid Regragui . Opposite, Brazil arrives with some of the future gems of the Seleção , like Vitor Roque (Ath. Paranaense), Mauricio(Internacional Porto Alegre) or João Pedro (Brighton&Hove Albion).
Here is the list of players called up :
Goalkeepers : Alaa Bellarouch, Rachid Ghanimi, Elias Mago, Walid Hasbi.
Defense : Ayoub Amraoui, Akram Nakkach, Achraf Laaziri, Zakaria El Ouahdi, Diyae Eddine Jermoumi, Oualid Mhamdi, Chadi Riad, Ayman El Wafi, Mohamed Jaouab, Mehdi Boukamir.
Midfield : Oussama El Azzouzi, Ayman Azhil, Aimen Moueffek, Younes Taha, Abdellah Haimoud, Neil El Aynaoui, Yassine Kechta.
Attack : Ibrahim El Kadiri, Salim El Jebbari, Hamza Igamane, Amine El Ouazzani, Abdellah Raihani, Yanis Bagraoui.