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Morocco welcome Senegal to Rabat for an international friendly on Friday night, with both African giants playing their first games of the calendar year 2020.
Both teams still have qualifying matches to play for the next Africa Cup of Nations tournament, which is scheduled to be held in January 2022.
In the qualifiers, Morocco are currently top of Group E, with 4 points in 2 games. They have beaten Burundi and drawn against Mauritania in their two games so far.
Morocco will want to perform well, after having been below par in the 2019 AFCON competition. They were eliminated in the Round of 16, after losing in a penalty shootout against Benin.
Senegal, on the other hand, have two wins in two qualification games so far, having beaten Congo and Eswatini so far, to be top of Group H, as they attempt to qualify for a tournament in which they were runners-up in the last edition. Senegal lost the AFCON final, 1-0 to Algeria in 2019.
Morocco vs Senegal Head-to-Head
Morocco and Senegal have played against each other 29 times, with Morocco winning 16 of those games. Senegal have only beaten Morocco on seven occasions, while six matches between these two teams have ended in draws.
The last time the two sides faced each other was in 2012, with Morocco losing that international friendly 1-0 at home.
Morocco vs Senegal Team News
Morocco have named Hakim Ziyech in their squad, but it is not yet clear whether the new Chelsea signing can play any part in this game. Ziyech has not yet featured in a competitive game for the Blues, since he picked up an injury during a pre-season clash against Brighton and Hove Albion.
Injured: None
Doubtful: Hakim Ziyech (Knee)
Sadio Mane has tested positive for COVID-19. and hence is in self-isolation in Liverpool. But after a long injury hiatus, Salif Sane has finally made it back to the national team squad. The Schalke centre-back is expected to partner Kalidou Koulibaly in the middle of the Senegal defe.
Injured: Sadio Mane (COVID-19)
Doubtful: None
Morocco vs Senegal Predicted Lineups
Morocco (4-3-3): Yassine Bounou; Achraf Hakimi, Zouhair Feddal, Romain Saiss, Nabil Dirar; Nassim Boujellab, Sofyan Ambrabat, Omar El Kaddouri, Munir El-Haddadi, Youssef En-Nesyri, Zakaria Labyad
Senegal (4-3-3): Edouard Mendy; Yassine Sabaly, Salif Sane, Kalidou Koulibaly, Saliou Ciss; Idrissa Gueye, Cheikhou Kouyate, Sidy Sarr; Ismaila Sarr, Famara Diedhiou, Krepin Diatta
Morocco vs Senegal Prediction
On paper, these are two very evenly matched teams. Due to the pandemic, neither team has played any match for almost a year now, so it will be interesting to see how the combinations and systems work out on their return for both coaches.
This will be a cagey game, and we are predicting a draw in this one.
Prediction: Morocco 1-1 Senegal
