Sunday, September 5, 2021 at 5:04 PM• Rian Rosendaal • Last update: 17:10

It seems impossible that Morocco will play against Guinea on Monday evening in the context of the World Cup qualifiers. The West African country is currently under the spell of a coup d’état. The Moroccan national team is not allowed to leave the players’ hotel in the capital Conakry for the time being. The Moroccan players are expected to leave Guinea as soon as possible if possible.

Alpha Condé (83) has been the president of Guinea since 2010, but his rule seems to be coming to an end soon. According to, among other things, the AFP Condé is currently being held by an army special unit in Sékoutoureya, the presidential palace of the head of government in Conakry. The soldiers of the Guinean army reportedly rally behind Lieutenant Colonel Mamady Doumbouya. In 2011, there was also a coup d’état, in which several people were killed. At the time, however, the coup plotters failed to oust Condé.

The unrest in Guinea also has consequences for Morocco, which can therefore almost certainly put an end to Monday evening’s meeting. The selection of national coach Vahid Halilhodzic wanted to complete a training session in the Umum Lansana Conté Stadium in Conakry on Sunday, but that practice session has been cancelled. It seems only a matter of time before Monday’s World Cup qualifier is finally removed from the agenda.

Morocco started the qualifying series on Thursday with a 2-0 victory over Sudan on the way to the World Cup in Qatar. Halilhodzic decided not to call up Hakim Ziyech for this international match due to a lack of discipline and commitment. It quickly sparked a furious reaction from the Chelsea midfielder. “Next time you talk, speak the truth!” Ziyech wrote on his Instagram Stories on Thursday, followed by a clown emoji. “Ziyech showed no discipline during the last two games,” said Halilhodzic, who had already announced at the end of August that the attacking midfielder would not be part of the Moroccan selection.

“He didn’t look like a player competing with the national team for World Cup qualifiers,” Halilhodzic said. “For the first time in my career I saw a player in the national team who does not want to train and pretends to be injured. Although tests have shown that he can play. I will not tolerate this behavior as long as I am the national coach of Morocco.”