Morocco squad escorted out of Guinea after apparent coup

Morocco’s national team was escorted out of Guinea, where they were set to play a World Cup qualifier on Monday, on Sunday after an attempted coup took place in the capital Conakry.

Following hours of heavy gunfire near the presidential palace, football’s governing body Fifa and its African counterpart Caf postponed the game.

But the Moroccan delegation was trapped in its Conakry hotel, where coach Vahid Halilhodzic heard gunfire “nearly all day” , he told French media agency L’Equipe, as the country’s embassy tried to arrange their safe passage out of the country.

Morocco are captained by Wolves defender Romain Saiss and also include QPR striker Ilias Chair and Watford duo Adam Masina and Imran Louza, as well as Paris St-Germain’s Achraf Hakimi.

After hours of uncertainty and with some players “worried” according to Halilhodzic, both the Moroccans and the match officials were finally given an escort to the airport, from where they flew out late on Sunday.