Azzedine Ounahi, Morocco’s metronome, aims to answer again against Mali | OneFootball

Azzedine Ounahi’s club path has zigzagged, yet his Morocco form endures. L'Équipe reports that the 25-year-old ex-OM midfielder aims to show it again against Mali on Friday at 21:00.

Morocco opened with a 2-0 win over the Comoros on Sunday. Walid Regragui sees Ounahi as the team’s metronome, though he wanted more before half-time and substituted him on 64 minutes for Abde Ezzalzouli after sterile possession.

Even so, leaving him out against Mali looks unlikely. Regragui says he has backed Ounahi through criticism, arguing a manager must stand by talents such as Nayef Aguerd or Brahim Diaz when form dips.

After the 2022 World Cup, he struggled at OM. A serious injury in March 2023, depression that autumn after his best friend died in a road accident, and positional changes under successive coaches stalled him and he failed to impose himself.

By summer 2024, Medhi Benatia, his former adviser turned OM executive, pushed for an exit as Roberto De Zerbi refreshed the squad. Ounahi rejected two Al-Sadd bids, tensions rose between Benatia and figures in Morocco’s federation who favoured competitiveness over exoticism, then in September 2024 he joined Panathinaikos on loan and was voted 2024-2025 player of the season by Athens fans.

In summer 2025, Benatia sought a Spartak Moscow move that would have brought OM a strong fee, but Ounahi chose Girona on lower wages. He has 3 goals and one assist in 10 league games, and Regragui believes Morocco’s shirt never feels too heavy for him.

Source: L'Équipe