Why is Adrien Rabiot not playing France vs Morocco World Cup 2022 semifinal?

France midfielder Adrien Rabiot was ommitted from the starting lineup against Morocco due to an illness.

France’s Adrien Rabiot. (FILE) | Photo Credit: Hamad I Mohammed

France midfielder Adrien Rabiot was ommitted from the starting lineup against Morocco in the FIFA World Cup semifinal at the Al Bayt stadium on Wednesday (IST).

The Juventus player missed the collective French training for the past two days and trained light indoors after suffering from cold and flu symptoms.

Youssouf Fofana has replaced Rabiot in the French team. Defender Dayot Upamecano too was ruled out of the semifinal.

The 27-year-old scored the opening goal in France’s 4-1 win against Australia in a group D match and also has an assist under his belt in this World Cup so far.

Meanwhile, Morocco has named captain and defender Romain Saiss, who suffered a hamstring injury in the quarterfinal against Portugal, in the starting 11 and that will be a huge boost for Walid Regragui’s side.

The winner of the match between France and Morocco will play Argentina in the final on December 18.

Starting lineups:

France - Hugo Lloris (c), Jules Kounde, Raphael Varane, Ibrahima Konate, Theo Hernandez, Antoine Griezmann, Aurelien Tchouameni, Youssouf Fofana, Ousmane Dembele, Olivier Giroud, Kylian Mbappe

Morocco - Yassine Bounou, Achraf Hakimi, Jawad El Yamiq, Nayef Aguerd, Romain Saiss (c), Noussair Mazraoui, Sofyan Amrabat, Hakim Ziyech, Azzedine Ounahi, Soufiane Boufal, Youssef En-Nesyri