Watford handed major double boost ahead of Wrexham clash - it involves Imran Louza | OneFootball

Watford duo Imran Louza and Othmane Maamma have both been left out of Morocco's final AFCON squad, which is a big boost for head coach Javi Gracia.

Watford have been handed a major boost with the somewhat-surprising news that midfielder Imran Louza and winger Othmane Maamma have both been left out of Morocco's final squad for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations.

After replacing Paulo Pezzolano in October, Javi Gracia has made a decent start to his second spell as Watford head coach, winning four, drawing four and losing three of his 11 games in charge so far to move his side into promotion contention.

The Hornets were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by bottom side Sheffield Wednesday at Vicarage Road on Tuesday night, with Vivaldo Semedo's 97th-minute equaliser salvaging a last-gasp point after Louza had missed a penalty earlier in the second half, and they currently sit 12th in the table, just three points from the play-off places.

Watford are back in action on Saturday when they make the trip to face Wrexham at the SToK Cae Ras, but they would have been fearing that it would be the last time they would have Louza and Maamma available for at least a few weeks with AFCON approaching.

However, after Louza and Maamma were not selected for Morocco's final AFCON squad, the Hornets will be able to call upon their services during the busy festive period.

Watford duo Imran Louza and Othmane Maamma left out of final Morocco AFCON squad

With AFCON getting underway on 21st December, Watford would have had to release Louza and Maamma after the Wrexham game if they were called up by Morocco, and as the tournament does not end until 18th January, they could potentially have been without them for over a month depending on their country's progress.

Louza has been one of the Hornets' standout performers this season, scoring six goals and providing five assists in 18 appearances in all competitions so far, with four of those strikes coming under Gracia, so the Spaniard would certainly have been frustrated to lose his captain.

After returning from an impressive Under-20 World Cup tournament, during which he won the Golden Ball award, Maamma has caught the eye with some bright performances for Watford, and he scored his first goal for the club in the 2-1 defeat at Birmingham City earlier this month.

With Morocco head coach Walid Regragui deciding against picking Louza and Maamma for his final AFCON squad, they will now be available for the Hornets' Championship games against Stoke City, Leicester City, Norwich City, Birmingham City, Hull City and Millwall, as well as their FA Cup clash against Bristol City during the busy winter period.

As the January transfer window looms, Louza and Maamma have both been linked with moves away from Vicarage Road, with the former recently admitting that he wants to "experience something different" and the latter reportedly being monitored by Celtic, but chairman Scott Duxbury has stressed that Watford will not sell any players against Gracia's wishes in January.

After Louza's fine season for Watford in the Championship and Maamma's starring role in Morrocco's recent Under-20 World Cup victory, Gracia would perhaps have been expecting both players to be selected for the final AFCON squad.

However, Morocco's decision to leave out Louza and Maamma is a huge boost for Gracia ahead of what could be a season-defining period for his side, with games against many of their fellow play-off hopefuls including Stoke, Leicester, Birmingham, Hull and Millwall to come between now and the middle of January.

As Gracia looks to make the Hornets a little more consistent, the last thing he needed was to lose two of his key players at such a critical time, but having them both available over the coming weeks is a welcome bonus for the 55-year-old.