Mohamed El Haidawi, president of Moroccan club Olympique Safi, has reflected on Saturday’s goalless draw away to USM Alger in the first leg of the African Confederation Cup semi-finals, and he also addressed the controversy surrounding Safi’s Algerian player, Houari Ferhani.
Writing on Facebook, he said: “The first leg in Algeria finished 0–0, and we still have the return fixture in Safi, where we will aim to reach the final. Qualification is within reach if we all unite behind this shared objective.”
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Amid several refereeing controversies, Safi held Union to a draw on home soil.
As for the controversy over Houari Ferhani’s shirt—he had taken the field at Algiers’ 5 July Stadium without the Moroccan flag—El Haidawi explained:I wish to clarify an important issue that arose during the first leg: our determined midfielder Houari Ferhani was briefly without a shirt displaying our cherished flag. This was caused by a technical problem involving our sportswear partner and the team’s kit manager, and it was resolved in the second half.”.
“Houari did not refuse to wear the shirt; he considers Morocco his second home and is fully committed to our colours,” he added.
He concluded by stressing that Safi “has a chance to make history, and that chance demands we all rally behind the team, protect the players and keep them motivated.”