Morocco’s Atlas Lions are in a decisive juncture, Thursday, against Canada in the third round of Group F competitions for the Qatar Football World Cup 2022, amid questions about the participation of their star Goalkeeper, Yassine Bounou.
The Sevilla Goalkeeper withdrew at the last moment before the start of the game against Belgium (2-0), Sunday.
He was in the starting line-up for the match, went through the warm-up, and stood with his teammates during the national anthem, before he felt dizzy. After that, his coach, Walid Regragui, decided not to risk his participation and replaced him with Goalkeeper Munir Mohamedi.
The distinguished goalkeeper explained to France Press the reason for his departure before the match: “I am in good shape, I had an injury from the Croatia match, I did not want to determine its type and it was renewed. I hope to be ready for the Canada match.”
Bounou trained normally on Monday and Tuesday, and according to Morocco’s Head Coach Walid Regragui “Bounou’s in good shape, he had some issues before the game against Belgium, but he’s training well, I’m expecting him to be fit for tomorrow’s game.”
Bounou is considered a mainstay in the Moroccan national team and one of the contributors to qualifying for the World Cup For the sixth time in its history. His brilliance with the Andalusian team was his gateway to the lions’ net, after he was a reserve in the 2018 World Cup in Russia for Munir Mohamedi.
Mohamedi was as expected the first choice to replace Bounou to face Belgium, and succeeded in keeping a clean sheet. He told AFP after the match: “We are soldiers on standby. I did not expect to play a key role and did not have enough time to get into the atmosphere of the match, But I am a professional and I have a lot of experience and knowledge of the team.”
Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti, when asked about his readiness to play in the event that Mohamedi was injured, Wydad Casablanca goalkeeper said: “Yes, we are here to defend the colors of the national team, and you must be ready at any moment. I have experience on big games in Africa, where I won the Champions League twice, in front of large crowds.”
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