Morocco coach Vahid Halihodzic has insisted he will not be bringing Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech back to the squad, criticising the forward’s attitude.
Ziyech is currently out of favour with his national side, having been left out in September following a falling out with Halihodzic.
He’s not played for his country since and was a shock omission from their squad for the African Cup of Nations in January.
Morocco have since been knocked out of the tournament, suffering a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Egypt in the quarterfinals on Sunday.
That result was a disappointing one for a country many had tipped to go far and has led to criticism of the manager, including calls for Chelsea’s Ziyech to be handed a swift return.
He said, relayed by Algérie Press Service: “I’ve already forgiven him twice, the third time is enough. It’s not easy for me, but you need to respect the manager and the national team. I can’t call up a player who can make the group explode, even if he’s called Lionel Messi. Aimé Jacquet and Didier Deschamps became world champions by putting the best players aside. I’m not the first to do it.
