QPR boss Cifuentes has his say on Ilias Chair’s potential AFCON involvement

Marti Cifuentes hopes his QPR side has enough to cope with the potential absence of Ilias Chair should he be selected to represent Morocco at the Africa Cup of Nations in January.

The creative midfielder told Sky Sports last week that he was ‘hopeful’ of being selected for the tournament in the Ivory Coast despite not being called up for international duty since June.

Chair – who was part of Morocco’s 2022 World Cup squad that defied the odds to reach the semi-finals in Qatar – has been in excellent form since Cifuentes took over as QPR head coach, scoring his first goal of the season against Rotherham United before coming off the bench to provide two assists in the win against Preston last time out.

If the 26-year-old is called up by Morocco coach Walid Regragui for the tournament that takes place between January 13 and February 11, he could miss as many as five Championship games.

“I hope he’s not going!” joked Cifuentes when asked how he felt about Chair possibly being selected.

“I understand him, and we know that the possibility is there, and I think that if he keeps playing at the level he is at, he will probably be an option [for Morocco].”

The Spaniard added: “All of the guys are focused on the next game and focused on playing well for QPR.

“If Ilias is gone, or for whatever reason a player is missing, we cannot be dependent on one player no matter if it is Ilias or any other player.

“Obviously, he is very important for us, but my target is to build an identity, to build a solid team performance no matter who is playing.”