Ayoub El Kaabi's Spectacular Finish Caps Morocco's Victory Against the Coelacanths in Afcon First Game.
The the Moroccan side shook off a jittery beginning to beat their island opponents in the competition's opening game on the weekend, thanks to the Real Madrid attacker and super-sub Ayoub El Kaabi in the second half.
It was a less than dominant display, however, from the highly fancied Moroccans, who sit 97 places above the tiny Indian Ocean nation in the FIFA rankings and were forced to toil hard for the points in wet conditions at Rabat's national stadium.
Nervy Beginning and Missed Opportunities
Morocco failed to convert an first-half penalty and were locked at 0-0 at half-time even with dominating the ball, eventually opening the scoring in the 55th minute.
The goal arrived after full-back Mazraoui did well to keep the ball in play before laying it across for Díaz to calmly pass into the net.
Every first match is invariably tough but we improved in the second period,” commented manager Walid Regragui.
El Kaabi's Moment of Brilliance
The tension was then extinguished by a moment of sheer individual brilliance from substitute El Kaabi. Just 10 minutes following coming on, the striker met a ball into the box with a spectacular bicycle kick in the 74th minute, making it two and ensuring the win.
Before that, the hosts might have taken the lead in the 11th minute when a spot-kick was awarded for a foul on Brahim Díaz. Yet, Rahimi's effort was kept out by Comoros goalkeeper Yannick Pandor.
The Visitors' Resistance and Second-Half Chance
The underdogs stoutly defended against Morocco at bay before the hosts' superior firepower eventually told.
Shot-stopper Yannick Pandor pulled off several other good stops to limit the score as the match wore on, even though his team did have a clear opportunity for an equalizer shortly after the first goal, with Saïd shooting straight at Morocco goalkeeper Bounou.
Fitness Worry for Morocco
The three points was somewhat overshadowed by an apparent injury to Morocco's skipper, Saïss, who was forced off after the 18th minute in some distress.
The centre-back had only returned to the international setup last month after a lengthy layoff caused by a serious ankle operation.
The win extends the team's historic run of successive wins to nineteen, beating the previous best of 15 set by the Spanish national team between 2008 and 2009.
