2026 World Cup: four Atlas Lions set to face their Dutch past

29.06.26 AP World Cup

Netherlands

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Morocco

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In the round of 16 of the World Cup, Morocco will go head-to-head with the Netherlands in a clash that promises to be fiercely contested.

The BBVA Stadium in Monterrey, Mexico, will set the stage for this showdown on Monday, June 29, kicking off at 01:00 GMT.

During the group stage, the Atlas Lions finished second in their group behind Brazil with 7 points, after victories over Scotland (1-0) and Haiti (4-2), as well as a draw against Brazil (1-1).

World Cup 2026: The official and complete group stage schedule

The Dutch, for their part, topped their group with 7 points as well, thanks to wins over Sweden (5-1) and Tunisia (3-1), plus a draw against Japan (2-2).

This fixture will be particularly special for four Moroccan players, who will be facing their Dutch footballing roots.

Anass Salah-Eddine

The 24-year-old left-back came through the youth ranks at AZ Alkmaar and Ajax Amsterdam, before making a successful stint at FC Twente.

This season, he played on loan at PSV Eindhoven from AS Roma.

He has tallied 62 appearances in the Dutch Eredivisie, scoring two goals and providing five assists.

Additionally, he represented most of the Netherlands’ youth national teams before switching his footballing nationality to Morocco in 2015.

Sofyan Amrabat

The Huizen native joined Utrecht’s academy in 2012 before moving to Feyenoord in 2017 for a fee of 4 million euros.

In 63 Eredivisie matches, he scored just one goal but delivered nine assists.

A former Netherlands U15 international, he joined the Atlas Lions in 2017 and has since made 76 appearances without scoring.

Noussair Mazraoui

The 28-year-old right-back entered Ajax Amsterdam’s youth setup in 2005.

Promoted to the first team in 2018, he played 93 Eredivisie matches, scoring six goals and providing four assists.

He made his debut for Morocco in 2018, featuring in 48 matches and recording two goals and four assists.

Ismael Saibari

The soon-to-be Bayern Munich signing joined PSV Eindhoven’s academy in 2020 from Belgian club Genk.

Across 93 Eredivisie appearances, he netted 31 goals and registered 24 assists.

With the Moroccan national team, he has scored 12 goals and delivered one assist in 33 outings.

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.

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