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FIFpro blast CAF over Morocco sanction

Paris - The African division of global players' union FIFPro have hit out at African football bosses for their treatment of Morocco.

The country has been banned from the next two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for refusing to host this year's event due to fears surrounding the Ebola virus, they were also kicked out of the 2015 edition when being replaced as hosts.

Morocco were fined $1 million and ordered to pay $9 million in compensation for pulling out at the last minute, forcing Equatorial Guinea to step in at the 11th hour to save the day.

But FIFPro said the punishment will affect players the most.

"It's not up to the African division of FIFPro to know whether Morocco acted within its rights in refusing to organise the last CAN," said a FIFPro statement.

"However, it is our place to express surprise that the CAF sanctions target first of all the players.

"Preventing a country from competing at three successive African Cup of Nations (2015, 2017 and 2019) is to sacrifice an entire generation of players, preventing them from expressing themselves on the highest international stage and preventing them from taking part in an important element of their job as a professional footballer."

FIFPro said they favoured financial sanctions against the Moroccan FA or indeed a ban against hosting events for a certain period of time, rather than kicking the team out of those competitions.

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