Facts about Moroccan player Hakim Ziyech all fans should know

Many may call it an upset or a surprise, but the undeniable fact is that Morocco is one of the four semi-finalists in this World Cup. They are the first African nation to get this far. With players like Achraf Hakimi and Romain Saiss on the team, many forget that 'The Wizard of Amsterdam' — Hakim Ziyech is also playing for Morocco.

Here are 4 facts that you may not know about Hakim Ziyech.

He could have played for the Netherlands

Born to a Dutch father and a Moroccan mother, Hakim Ziyech holds dual citizenship of Morocco as well as the Netherlands. Not only that, he had actually played for De Oranjes. Ziyech featured for the Netherlands at the U21 level and was considered by many to be the replacement for Wesley Sneijder.

"Choosing a national team is not done with your head, but with your heart. I was born in the Netherlands, but I've always felt Moroccan. I know that many people will never understand this feeling," said Ziyech, explaining his decision.

He had retired

As surprising as it sounds, Hakim Ziyech retired from the national team earlier this year. He had announced that he is leaving the Moroccan national team in February after he had a falling out with Halilhodzic, the coach of that time. But as fate would have it, Halilhodzic was sacked in August and the new coach had no issues with Ziyech. Soon he was invited to play for Morocco once again and the player decided to come out of retirement to feature for his country.

A family man

Even though Ziyech was born in the Netherlands, he chose to represent Morocco — his mother's country. Among the three sisters and four brothers, Ziyech is the youngest. The midfielder showed great interest in football from an early age and his father as well as his elder brothers supported his passion. With his father passing away at the early age of 10, Hakim Ziyech had to face great hardship but his brothers and sisters supported his dream all through. As a result, Ziyech is very close to his family and holds family values as a cherished quality.

Loves to give to charity

Having lost his father at an early age, Ziyech knows what hardship is and loves to help out people whenever he can. He frequently donates to team staff members and others in need especially spectacular of his charitable activities is the fact that he has not taken any payment earned from playing for the Moroccan national team since 2015. Rather he donates all of the earnings to team staff and poor families in Morocco.