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With His Sterling Performance For Morocco, Manchester United Need Not Bother As Other Africans Toe The Path Of Morocco To Round Of 16 Today And Tomorrow
Manchester United defender Noussair Mazraoui delivered a fabulous performance for Morocco during their World Cup round of 32 win over the Netherlands on penalties.
The 28-year-old has been a consistent starter at left-back for Morocco at the tournament, and he produced a defensive masterclass during their victory on Monday night.
Mazraoui won a stunning nine ground and aerial duels against the Dutch. The United ace also made 12 clearances alongside four tackles and three recoveries for the Atlas Lions.
The £17 million signing made 19 defensive contributions, which was the most by any player on the pitch.
His most important involvement was undoubtedly during the dying seconds of second-half stoppage time (1-1). He made a terrific sliding tackle to deny a potential late Dutch winner.
Morocco eventually played out a 1-1 draw in regulation time before winning on penalties (3-2). The African heavyweights will now face co-hosts Canada in the round of 16 on July 4.
Meanwhile, Mazraoui has been simply exceptional as a left-back for Morocco, and he has shown United that they may not need to pursue a fresh solution for the position this summer.
There has been much talk about the club needing another left-back to support the injury-prone Luke Shaw, given Patrick Dorgu is more adept as a left winger and could play there in future.
However, Mazraoui has showcased why he should be considered as a competitor to Shaw, at least in the short term. United may not need to invest in the left-back department for next season.
Instead, the funds could be utilised to pursue a marquee attacker or an extra central midfielder to compensate for the long-term injury sustained by Manuel Ugarte at the World Cup.
Credit: Sri Aswin
