Morocco Missed the Boat on Lamine Yamal: A Delayed Opportunity for Talent

Nasser Larguet, the former director of the Mohammed VI Academy and technical director of football in Morocco, was no longer in his position when the Moroccan national team sought to persuade Lamine Yamal to join them instead of Spain. According to Larguet, Morocco’s approach came too late.

“When you arrive at the moment when the player has already played with the senior team, I’m not saying it’s 100% impossible, but it’s about 80% (…) Lamine Yamal was already in the pipeline for the Spanish national team when you came knocking at his door, and shortly after, he was with the senior national team. He knows he is with the senior national team, and then he is gone. (…) If we had approached Lamine Yamal at 15 years old, I believe we would have had a 50-50 chance against Spain,” he stated in an interview with RMC Sport.