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Vahid Halilhodzic and the press still can not find a middle ground concerning the absence of Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech at the on going AFCON. The coach of the Atlas Lions once again expressed bitterness towards the subject matter on Monday after the victory over Ghana (1-0) in the first match of Group C played at the Amadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaounde.
Asked on the handrail by a journalist about the absence of Hakim Ziyech from this competition, the coach had a surprising, but very clear answer.
"You waited until the beginning of the competition in Cameroon to ask me this question? You should have come to Rabat", replied the Franco-Bosnian technician visibly annoyed.
The absence of the Chelsea player is in any case much talked about in Morocco. The former Atlas Lions captain Mehdi Benatia spoke about the subject before the match against Ghana on the BeIn Sports channel.
"I tried to talk to the protagonists (Ziyech and Vahid editor's note). It's sad to be without players like him, but there are other players present," the newly-retired player explained. Visibly the Moroccan team is missing their playmaker as their opening game against Ghana will suggest. The team did not play as usual when they have Ziyech onboard. Morocco's narrow 1-0 win over the Black Stars came as a hotly contested steal.
