World Cup dark horses forced into last-minute changes as two star players ruled out

Morocco have been rocked by two key injuries just days before their World Cup opener against Brazil on Saturday.

The Africa Cup of Nations holders go into the global tournament as one the dark horses following their stunning last four years.

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In the previous World Cup in Qatar in 2022, the Atlas Lions became the first African nation to reach the semi-finals.

They eventually came unstuck to France – losing 2-0 in the last-four – before being beaten 2-1 by Croatia in the third-placed play-off.

And they then scooped major silverware at AFCON 2025 – despite losing to Senegal in the final – with the competition hosts eventually awarded a walkover victory after their opponents stormed off the pitch in protest to a late penalty decision in normal time.

Double trouble

While there is a feel-good factor surrounding Morocco, star duo Nayef Aguerd and Abde Ezzalzouli will play no part in North America.

Ex-West Ham defender Aguerd – now on the books at Marseille – hasn’t featured on the international stage since the AFCON final.

And due to groin issues, he hasn’t competed at club level since March 4, with the centre-back failing to recover in time after surgery.

As for winger Ezzalzouli, he was involved in Morocco’s recent 1-1 draw against Norway.

The 24-year-old was tipped to be one of the World Cup’s breakout stars having fired in 15 goals and 13 assists in 43 matches for Real Betis across all competitions in the 2025/26 season.

But a freak collision with teammate Chadi Riad during the clash with Norway resulted in a leg injury.

Morocco boss Mohamed Ouahbi has since called up Marwane Saadane and Amine Sbai to replace Aguerd and Ezzalzouli respectively in his 26-man squad.

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Veteran centre-half Saadane is currently on Saudi club Al Fateh’s books, with the 34-year-old plying his trade in Saudi Arabia since 2019.

As for Angers forward Sbai, he only made his senior Morocco debut in last month’s 5-0 friendly victory over Burundi.

Making the move to France from Al Fateh last summer, the 23-year-old chipped in with four goals and a solitary assist from 27 outings for Angers.

British eyes will be on Morocco in Group C, as not only do they battle five-time World Cup champions Brazil, but they will also pit their wits against Scotland and Haiti.

And European football broadcaster Andy Brassell believes Morocco must reach the knockout stage with the talent they can rely on in their squad.

He told talkSPORT: “There’s a huge question to how Morocco are going to react to AFCON, really, because, of course, they are the AFCON champions in inverted commas.

“They’ve been given the title by the courts, but, they didn’t win it in the actual final, did they?

“I think how some of their players react to not just the mental pressure and the trauma of the final.

“You think of [Real Madrid playmaker] Brahim Diaz, who’s just a brilliant player, and his penalty miss [against Senegal in the final] and how that really hung over him, how he’s recovered from that and how they’ve recovered from the uncertainty of who actually is the African champions, I think is a big question.

“Also, you’ve got [Paris Saint-Germain right-back] Achraf Hakimi, who I think is their best player, he’s got, obviously, a lot of legal trouble at the moment.

“So if he can separate himself from that and properly invest himself in this World Cup, I think it is a question, but I think you have to look at the younger players as well that are coming through now.”

Brassell added: “They need to get to the knockouts, at least, with the talent they’ve got.”

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