Noussair Mazraoui appears to be paying the price for his Africa Cup of Nations involvement, slipping from a key starter to a bench option at Manchester United since returning from duty with Morocco.
Under former coach Rúben Amorim, the Moroccan international was a regular in the starting XI and an important piece of the Red Devils’ structure.
However, during his absence at AFCON, new boss Michael Carrick reshaped the team and built a solid system that has delivered impressive results, including a fourth straight league win with a 2-0 victory over Tottenham that lifted United to fourth place on 44 points.
With Carrick now relying on Diogo Dalot at right-back, Mazraoui’s opportunities have shrunk to late cameos, as seen in three consecutive Premier League games against Arsenal, Fulham, and Spurs, where he only featured for a few minutes at the end.
His situation highlights the challenge many African players face after AFCON, often returning to find fierce competition and in-form teammates.
Mazraoui now has to effectively start again from zero, fighting in training to convince Carrick to break his “never change a winning team” approach and restore him to the starting lineup.
