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Former Aston Villa and Everton star Anwar El Ghazi is set to make a last minute international allegiance switch weeks before the 2022 World Cup.
El Ghazi has been capped two times by the Netherlands in qualifying fixtures and admitted he was still hopeful of playing for the Oranje despite not featuring since 2015.
He's not in the 55-man provisional squad selected by Louis van Gaal for the showpiece in Qatar, however and that appears to have prompted a change of heart from El Ghazi.
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Although born in the Netherlands, he is of Moroccan descent and therefore eligible to play for the African nation.
And having been snubbed, Eindhovens Dagblad say El Ghazi is now very much considering a shock switch and confirmed the Moroccan football federation are working on the paperwork after PSV's 3-0 win over NEC Nijmegen on Sunday.
Morocco have two weeks before they have to name their World Cup squad and so it could go down to the wire.
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El Ghazi, who played 100 times for Ajax, returned to the Eredivisie in the summer when he secured a move to PSV, where he's scored four goals in 10 appearances.
He played for the Netherlands at multiple youth levels before getting his debut in October 2015 and featuring against Kazakhstan and the Czech Republic.
The 27-year-old was called up to Frank de Boer's provisional Euro 2020 squad before being cut.
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His decision to play for the Netherlands actually came courtesy of some advice from Cristiano Ronaldo, according to El Ghazi.
"I have thought about it for a long time. My parents, my family, my personal trainer and also Cristiano Ronaldo have advised me. I have included everything in my choice," El Ghazi told Ajax's official website, as per Sports Mole.
"It came up with Ronaldo. He asked how I stood on the Netherlands. He said if he were me, he would opt for the Netherlands. He said I had to decide it myself and that people always have an opinion.
"Choose Netherlands and Moroccans will say I'm not a real Moroccan, opt for Morocco then the Dutch say 'Hey, you're born and raised here, what the hell is that?' I'm going to do my best. I'm going to give everything for the country because I was born and raised here."
Topics: Netherlands, Football World Cup
Josh Lawless