Walid Regragui, coach of Morocco, was suspended for four matches, two of them suspended, by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a result of his altercation with Congolese defender and captain Chancel Mbemba after the final whistle of the Africa Cup match played on Sunday by both teams.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) immediately reacted in a statement where he announced that he would appeal “the incomprehensible sentence because coach Regragui does not violate the spirit of fair play at any time.”
Absent today against Zambis
Regragui, who led his team to a historic fourth place at the 2022 World Cup in Qatarwill not sit on the bench in the decisive match that Morocco will play against Zambia tonight in the final day of group F of the Africa Cup. If they qualify, they are also out of the round of 16 tie, unless the appeal is successful.
At the end of Sunday’s Morocco-DR Congo match (1-1), a scuffle broke out between players and members of the technical staff of both teams.
It is felt that in the match, the tension increased at the final whistle, when Regragui entered the grass from the Laurent-Pokou stadium in San Pedro (Ivory Coast) to go to Mbemba, and shook hands. Despite the player’s refusal, he continued to shake hands while trying to protest something before Mbemba was able to break free. In the locker room tunnel the brawl continued between members of both teams.
Eventually Mbemba denounced new media that Regragui insulted him but he denied directing any racist comments at her.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
