Why do Moroccans play for Morocco? Ex-Real Madrid star's answer may surprise you

Why do Moroccans play for the Morocco national team?

At first, this may look like a simple question with an even simpler answer. However, given the prevalence of dual nationality, players often have a number of options to choose from. Sometimes they pledge allegiance to the country of their parents, grandparents, or ancestors, and sometimes they pick the country where they were born or raised.

Six more players decide to play for Morocco

The former are usually African, lower-ranked teams, while the latter are European, mostly world-class squads.

The reasons behind players' decisions to choose this or that option are various, but in general, two are the most common: they opt for a "weaker" team led by their hearts and for a more powerful team led by reason.

So, back to the primary question: Why do Moroccans play for Morocco?

The former Netherlands international and the ex-Real Madrid midfielder, Rafael van der Vaart, has his own theory, commenting on the Ajax prospect Rayane Bounida's decision to represent the Atlas Lions at the international stage.

"I don’t want to be harsh, but all Moroccans who don’t perform well here [in the Netherlands] will play for the Morocco national team," the 43-year-old said, talking to the Dutch NOS via Morocco World News.

Still, Van der Vaart's remarks didn't end there, as he highlighted only one name he regretted not seeing in the Oranje jersey.

"Only [Hakim] Ziyech was someone I wished had been with us back then."

In the end, Van der Vaart's highly controversial statement did not just take a dig at the young Bounida, but also some much more famous names like, for instance, the former and current Manchester United players, Sofyane Amrabat and Noussair Mazraoui, who were both born in the Netherlands, but chose to represent Morocco.