Morocco start Africa Cup of Nations with win over Comoros

NEW DELHI: Brahim Diaz and Ayoub El Kaabi scored second-half goals as host Morocco got its Africa Cup of Nations bid off to a winning start by beating Comoros 2-0 in the tournament’s opening game on Sunday.

Soufiane Rahimi had a penalty saved in a frustrating first half for much-fancied Morocco, but Diaz fired home from inside the area 10 minutes after the interval at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in the capital Rabat.

Substitute El Kaabi then got the second with a stunning overhead kick. The victory on a wet and cold night sets the Atlas Lions up for the potentially tougher tests to come in Group A against Mali and Zambia.

The result also allowed Morocco, Africa’s best team in the FIFA rankings – at 11th place — to extend its world-record winning run to 19 consecutive matches.

“The match went as we thought it would, because the opening game is always difficult for the host nation due to all the expectations,” said coach Walid Regragui.

“We have been preparing for this for two years, so there was a lot of tension.

“The 2-0 scoreline is well deserved, and we could even have scored a third had we not relaxed a little in the last five minutes.

“It is great for the fans, but the objective was not to produce our best possible performance in the first match.” Agencies

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