Gattuso Salutes Liverpool Target Amrabat’s World Cup Performance

Gattuso Salutes Liverpool Target Amrabat’s World Cup Performance

Elijah Odetokun
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:21 PM
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  • The Atlas Lions of Morocco surprised the world when they reached the semifinals of the World Cup
  • Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat was one of the stars of the North African country in Qatar
  • AC Milan legend Gennaro Gattuso said he sees himself in the tough tackling midfielder

The Atlas Lions of Morocco made history as the first African country to reach the semifinals of a World Cup after beating Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal in the quarterfinals of the Qatar 2022 mundial.

The North Africans boast of a lot of established stars like Yassine Bono, Hakim Ziyech, Achraf Hakimi and Sofiane Boufal. Some new players caught the eye particularly Fiorentina defensive midfielder Sofyan Amrabat.

He played all seven games as Morocco lost the third-place match to fellow group mates Croatia who lost to Argentina in the semi-final, but they made history regardless, for their exploits under Walid Regragui.

Amrabat is now receiving plaudits from one of the great midfielders of the game Gennaro Gattuso, who made a reputation for being a tough tackler and tireless worker during his career, majorly with Serie A giants AC Milan.

Gennaro Gattuso, Sofyan Amrabat, Fiorentina, World Cup, Valencia, Morocco, AC Milan
Gennaro Gattuso sees himself in Sofyan Amrabat after World Cup performance. Photos by Ion Alcoba/Ulrik Pedersen.
Source: Getty Images

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Gattuso sees himself in Amrabat

The Valencia head coach while speaking to Spanish newspaper AS, as quoted by Squawka reveals admiration for the Moroccan and said he is him when he was his age.

''It's been a long time since I've seen a player like me, but I saw him at the World Cup: Amrabat. He moved me a lot, he looked like me when I was playing at 27.'' he said.

Amrabat arrived at Fiorentina in 2020 and could have been coached by Gattuso, had the former AC Milan midfielder not resigned just two weeks after taking over at Fiorentina due to dispute with the owner, as revealed by BBC Sports.

Amrabat nearly broke Mbappe's leg

Sports Brief earlier reported that Amrabat went viral on the internet for nearly breaking Mbappe into two with a flying tackle during the France Morocco semi-final match.

Kylian Mbappe, Sofyan Amrabat, France, Morocco, World Cup.
Amrabat sends Mbappe flying with a tackle during the France Morocco World Cup match. Photo by MB Media.
Source: Getty Images

He escaped with no booking as the referee claimed he got a touch of the ball before lunging into the Paris Saint-Germain attacker, much to the displeasure of French fans.

The tackle is one Gattuso will be proud of and could have instigated his comments on the former Club Brugge midfielder.

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Elijah Odetokun photo
Elijah Odetokun
Elijah Odetokun is Reuters-trained journalist with three years of experience having previously worked at Daily Times Nigeria, OmaSports and El Futbolero.
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