RIYADH: In April 2018, just two months before the start of the World Cup, Japan fired Vahid Halilhodžić, the head coach who had taken them through a successful qualification campaign. There now seems to be the imminent possibility that history will repeat itself in Morocco.
At the time, Kozo Tashima, the president of the Japan FA, said this about Halilhodžić: “We took the decision because we thought he’d become unable to forge a relationship of trust or communicate with his players.”
The Bosnia boss has not yet secured a place at the World Cup but he certainly struggled to build relationships with some players, and his ongoing fallout with Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech and Ajax standout Noussair Mazraoui could be costly for all concerned.
Neither will be present on March 25 or 29 when Morocco face the Democratic Republic of Congo in the final World Cup playoff. Few teams, outside the very best in the world, would choose to be without such talent but that is what is happening.
“I won’t speak about them ever again,” said Halilhodžić on Thursday as he named the squad. The former Paris Saint-Germain boss, who led Algeria to the knockout stages of the 2014 World Cup, may not be successful, however, in his desire to change the subject.
The best thing that can be said about the situation is that it has removed some pressure from the rest of the Atlas Lions in the buildup. Fans are already angry about the saga involving the Chelsea forward and the Ajax right-back, though if rumors are to be believed Mazraoui is to join Barcelona this summer.
Halilhodžić fell out with the players last year but said this week that he wanted to select them this time. “I speak often with (Fouzi) Lekjaa (the Morocco FA president). Ziyech and Mazraoui were on the list. They made the choice to refuse. We respect this choice, but now it’s over. I won’t speak about them ever again. I’m focusing on my group and the players who have been called up.”
It all started last June when Morocco played Ghana in a friendly. Halilhodžić claimed that Ziyech, who had just won the UEFA Champions League with Chelsea, had feigned injury in an attempt to avoid playing.
“For the first time in my coaching career, I have seen behavior that disappoints me,” Halilhodžić said. “A player who refuses to play a game, admittedly a friendly, on the pretext that he is injured … You can’t cheat with the national team. You are 100 percent there or you are not.”
Ziyech has repeatedly said that he did nothing wrong and now no longer wants to play for his country.
“At the end of the day, it’s a decision (Halilhodžić) makes and you have to respect it. If all the lying comes with it, it’s for me clear. Like I said before, I will not return to the national team. I feel sorry for (the fans), but that’s the situation right now,” he said in February.
With Mazraoui, the former Algeria boss claimed he did not want someone who refused to train or play. The 24-year-old gave his version last November, admitting that he had turned up for training late and upset the coach.
“During training, it was very hot and the coach asked us to drink every five minutes. During one of the breaks I didn’t drink, because I wasn’t thirsty anymore. He came to ask me to drink again, which I politely refused, but he nervously insisted. To calm the situation, (team-mate Romain) Saiss gave me a bottle of water, but I poured it on the floor. That’s how the problem started.”
There’s a little more. Halilhodžić has fallen out with striker Abderrazak Hamdallah who has been one of the best strikers in Saudi Arabia, a league with plenty of attacking talent. The boss claimed that the forward wanted a guarantee of playing time before representing his country. This has been denied though given Hamdallah’s recent injury, and is now a moot point.
While there are always two sides to a story, to fall out with one star seemed unfortunate, two a little careless and three, well, that does not bode well. Had Morocco won the African Cup of Nations then the coach would have had a blank cheque to do whatever he wanted but the Lions disappointedly exited in the quarter-finals at the hands of Egypt. There were calls for Halilhodžić to be dismissed. That didn’t happen but neither has a reconciliation.
Halilhodžić may be in a no-win situation. Morocco are favorites to beat DR Congo. Failure to do so will result in massive criticism and, surely, dismissal. Yet a victory and a place at the World Cup will only heighten the focus on the absent players especially if, as expected, Mazraoui, who has been one of the best right-backs in Europe this season, joins Barcelona.
It is too late for the playoffs but if Halilhodžić wants to avoid a repeat of the Japan episode then bridges need to be built — for his sake and Morocco’s.
