International Friendly Preview: Morocco v Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso will aim for a timely confidence boost ahead of their final FIFA World Cup qualifier when they face Morocco on Wednesday.

The African Cup of Nations runners-up are currently riding the crest of a wave, and are in with a chance of booking a spot in the final round of African qualifying as they sit second in Group E, a point behind leaders Congo with one game still to play.

That last, critical, World Cup qualifier is against Gabon on September 7, and Paul Put’s men will be hoping to build momentum with a win on Wednesday.

They face Morocco at the Stade de Tanger in a friendly fixture, with the hosts also likely to have targeted the clash as a chance to regroup following their own, disappointing, qualifying campaign.

Rachid Taoussi’s men missed out on the opportunity to rein in the Ivory Coast at the top of group C, despite wins in their last two games, and their hopes of reaching the next phase are now over.

They will, though, be buoyed by their recent record against Burkina Faso, having beaten Put’s team in the last three meetings between the two sides.

This fixture could provide the sternest test of that impressive run, with Augsburg’s Aristide Bance and apparent Schalke target Jonathan Pitroipa part of an in-form Burkina Faso attack, with both having scored twice in a run of three straight qualifying wins.

The future looks bright for Put’s men, with 17-year-old midfielder Bertrand Traore likely to be a regular feature of the side in years to come as he continues to impress with Premier League club Chelsea.

Morocco have plenty of talent of their own, however, and will be hoping that Abderrazak Hamdallah and Younes Belhanda can make an impact, with the former scoring nine goals in 17 league appearances for Norwegian club Aalesunds last season.