Tottenham Hotspur missed out on the chance to bring Sofyan Amrabat to the Premier League and the Morocco midfielder is now being labelled ‘a world-class player’ on the back of his World Cup heroics, via Fabrizio Romano.
The Atlas Lions went into Sunday’s group-stage clash with Belgium on the back of five successive clean sheets.
And if you were wondering just what it is that makes Morocco so difficult to break down, the way Walid Regragui’s side went about their business during that eye-catching 2-0 win over Kevin de Bruyne, Eden Hazard and co answered those questions rather emphatically.
In Romain Saiss and Nayef Aguerd, Morocco have a centre-half partnership capable of giving any in the World Cup a run for their money. They barely put a foot wrong against Belgium. And, before you can even think about taking on Saiss and Aguerd, try finding a way past the steel-coated midfield shield provided by the irrepressible Amrabat.
Easier said than done, certainly.
Tottenham Hotspur saw deal to sign Morocco and Fiorentina ace Sofyan Amrabat collapse
“Trust me, Amrabat is a world-class player. He is a key’ player in my plans,” Regragui said after the Fiorentina enforcer helped set the tone for a real statement win for the North African nation.
“I expect him to move to one of the major European clubs after the World Cup.”
According to Romano, Amrabat was ‘one step away’ from joining Antonio Conte’s Tottenham in 2021, before a potential £12 million move to North London ‘collapsed’ (Calciomercato). On the evidence of Sunday afternoon, it’s easy to see what Conte saw in the one-time Fiorentina youngster.
There almost seemed to be five of him at the pitch at the same time; a fleet of identical Amrabat clones buzzing across the turf, putting out fires and snapping into tackles. That Morocco managed to win the midfield battle, despite coming up against De Bruyne, Amadou Onana and Axel Witsel, was largely down to him.
“We have a successor to (former Feyenoord captain Ahmed) El Ahmadi in Morocco; Sofyan Amrabat,” ex-Dutch international Hans Kraay Jr tells ESPN.
“I have never seen him play so well. Not in the Netherlands and not in Italy. He is so well-trained, he is so fit. He can steal so many balls without fouling people.”
“I think Sofyan is one of the most important players in the Moroccan national team,” says El Ahmadi himself. “I played with him at Feyenoord; he really is a personality. If he didn’t play, you really saw a grumpy Sofyan!
“Italy has done him good. He has played with top players, and you can see that experience at the World Cup.”
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