El Kaabi's Stunning Finish Wraps Up The Atlas Lions' Victory Against Comoros in Afcon First Game.
The Morocco shook off a anxious beginning to overcome their island opponents in the tournament's opening game on the weekend, with goals from the Real Madrid attacker and substitute Ayoub El Kaabi in the second half.
This constituted a hardly emphatic showing, though, from the strongly favored Moroccans, who are ranked 97 places above the small Indian Ocean nation in the FIFA rankings and had to work tirelessly for the victory in wet conditions at Rabat's national stadium.
Tense Start and Missed Opportunities
Morocco missed an early spot-kick and were locked at 0-0 at the interval even with controlling the ball, finally breaking the deadlock in the 11th minute of the second half.
The goal came when Noussair Mazraoui showed great skill to keep the ball in play before laying it across for Díaz to calmly pass home.
Every first match is invariably tough but we delivered in the second half,” commented manager Regragui.
El Kaabi's Piece of Magic
Any lingering nerves was then extinguished by a moment of sheer genius from Ayoub El Kaabi. Just 10 minutes following his introduction, the forward met a ball into the box with a stunning bicycle kick in the 74th minute, making it two and sealing the win.
Earlier in the match, the Moroccan team might have taken ahead in the 11th minute when a spot-kick was awarded for a foul on Brahim Díaz. However, Rahimi's penalty was saved by keeper Pandor.
Comoros Defiant Stand and Late Chance
Comoros comfortably held Morocco at bay until the Moroccans' greater quality eventually told.
Goalkeeper Yannick Pandor pulled off several further good stops to keep down the scoreline as the match wore on, although his team did have a chance for an equalizer shortly following Díaz's goal, with Rafiki Saïd firing straight at Morocco goalkeeper Bounou.
Injury Worry for Hosts
The victory was somewhat overshadowed by an apparent injury to the skipper, Saïss, who was forced off in the 18th minute apparently in tears.
This defender had only made his comeback to the international setup last month after a lengthy absence caused by ankle surgery.
This result extends Morocco's record-breaking run of successive wins to nineteen, surpassing the old record of 15 set by the Spanish national team from 2008 and 2009.
