Zakaria Aboukhlal Called Up to Moroccan Squad to Replace Injured Ilias Akhomach

The Moroccan Football Federation has announced that national coach Walid Regragui has called up Zakaria Aboukhlal, from Toulouse FC, to join the Moroccan squad, replacing injured player Ilias Akhomach. Akhomach, who plays for Villarreal, suffered an ACL tear during a league match against Alavés after scoring a goal.

The young player left the field in tears, with medical scans later confirming the severe injury. Aboukhlal himself was recently sidelined for a while due to an injury.

Regragui announced his squad for November’s matches earlier, which includes Yahya Attiatallah but omits Mohamed Chibi. Morocco will face Gabon on Friday and Lesotho next Monday in their fifth and sixth qualifying matches for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.

Notably, Hakim Ziyech and Achraf Dari are absent due to injuries.

Squad List

• Goalkeepers: Yassine Bounou, Munir Mohamedi, Salah Eddine Chahib, Ayoub El Khiyati

• Defenders: Achraf Hakimi, Noussair Mazraoui, Abdelkabir Abqar, Jamel Harkass, Nayef Aguerd, Adam Masina, Adam Aznou, Yahya Attiatallah

• Midfielders: Sofyan Amrabat, Bilal El Khannous, Ismail Saibari, Oussama Targhalline, Amine Richardson, Azzedine Ounahi, Elias Ben Seghir

• Forwards: Zakaria Aboukhlal, Osama Sahraoui, Ayoub El Kaabi, Youssef En-Nesyri, Sofiane Rahimi, Brahim Diaz, Abde Ezzalzouli

Morocco currently tops its group with 12 points, followed by Gabon with 7, while Lesotho sits at the bottom with just one point.