Manchester United loanee Sofyan Amrabat is away at the African Cup of Nations.
Sofyan Amrabat was the player Manchester United fans were desperate to sign last summer to help out the team’s midfield. Eventually he clinched his move on transfer deadline day.
It has not been a totally successful spell for Amrabat. He has often been used merely as a back-up, even during the weeks Casemiro has been out injured, with teenage wonderkid Kobbie Mainoo displacing him.
Amrabat is currently away with Morocco for the African Cup of Nations, and the joke going around among Manchester United fans is that nobody has noticed he has gone.
How Amrabat fared in Morocco’s first game
Sofyan Amrabat was named in Morocco’s starting line-up for their group stage opener against Tanzania yesterday.
Amrabat’s Morocco won the game 3-0, with Romain Saiss, Azzedine Ounahi and Youssef En-Nesyri on the scoresheet.
Amrabat played all 90 minutes, completing 95 per cent of his passes. This was the highest completion rate of any player on the pitch to play substantial minutes.
These included 60 of 63 pass attempts, including six of six long balls, with two tackles won and one aerial battle won. He also made seven ball recoveries.
Morocco only enjoyed 52 per cent possession despite the one-sided scoreline and needed Amrabat in there. He helped ensure Tanzania did not have a single shot on target despite their share of possession.
Tougher games will be upcoming against DR Congo and Zambia, who drew their opening game.
The top two from the group go through and World Cup semi-finalists Morocco, already favourites, are in a strong position to qualify for the knockout stages after just one game.
Jadon Sancho shows support for Sofyan Amrabat
Sofyan Amrabat sent a message out on Instagram after the game, with the message ‘Good start’.
He received a short show of support in response from Manchester United outcast Jadon Sancho, sent on loan to Borussia Dortmund last week.
Sancho left a ‘fire emoji’ in response, showing his admiration for the Fiorentina owned star.
What makes this quite interesting is that Sancho and Amrabat never played a game together, or were even part of the same matchday squad.
It is not even clear if the pair ever trained together, not in any Erik ten Hag session, with Sancho banished before Amrabat could make his debut.
But clearly the pair would have crossed paths behind the scenes, or in social circles in Manchester, enough for Sancho to make a point of congratulating the Moroccan on an opening tournament win.
Andre Onana sat out Cameroon opener
Manchester United’s second player at the tournament, Andre Onana, is yet to play for Cameroon.
He arrived at the tournament late after playing for United against Tottenham at the weekend, and was not selected as a starter for their draw with Guinea.
It is assumed but not guaranteed that he returns to the line-up for upcoming matches against Gambia and Senegal.
READ MORE: Join the conversation with the United in Focus Whatsapp group
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
