Morocco coach: Oufkir called up on merit, not to block Netherlands

Oufkir made his Morocco debut on Friday, scoring in a 5-1 win over Niger after previously playing for Dutch youth sides.

Ayoub Oufkir, the AZ winger who represented multiple Dutch youth teams and scored for Jong Oranje in October, made his senior debut for Morocco on Friday. He came off the bench 15 minutes from the end and scored to seal a 5-1 victory over Niger, assisted by Ajax talent Abdellah Ouazane.

Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi defended the call-up at his post-match press conference, emphasizing that Oufkir was selected on merit rather than to prevent him from playing for the Netherlands. "He's a player I've been following for a long time, since my time with the Under-20s," Ouahbi said.

"We never lost sight of him. He's a good player, as you saw today. He provides depth—he's energetic, dynamic and technically gifted. Today he showed he's here because he deserves to be. We didn't call him up to force him to choose Morocco. He earned his call-up based on his current form and his profile."