El Kaabi's Stunning Goal Secures Morocco's Win Over the Coelacanths in Afcon Opener.
The Morocco overcame a jittery beginning to overcome their island opponents in the tournament's first match on Sunday, thanks to the Real Madrid attacker and super-sub El Kaabi in the second half.
This constituted a hardly emphatic showing, however, from the highly fancied hosts, who are ranked 97 places higher than the tiny Indian Ocean nation in the world rankings and were forced to work tirelessly for the points in rainy conditions at the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium.
Nervy Start and Missed Opportunities
Morocco missed an early penalty and were locked at 0-0 at the interval even with dominating the ball, finally opening the scoring in the 11th minute of the second half.
It arrived after Noussair Mazraoui showed great skill to prevent the ball from going out before laying it square for Brahim Díaz to sidefoot home.
“The opening game is invariably tough but we delivered in the second half,” commented manager Regragui.
El Kaabi's Piece of Brilliance
Any lingering nerves was subsequently extinguished by a piece of sheer genius from Ayoub El Kaabi. Just 10 minutes following his introduction, the striker connected with a cross with a spectacular bicycle kick in the 74th minute, doubling and ensuring the win.
Earlier in the match, the hosts might have taken ahead in the 11th minute when a spot-kick was given for a foul on Díaz. Yet, Rahimi's penalty was kept out by Comoros goalkeeper Pandor.
Comoros Defiant Stand and Second-Half Opportunity
The underdogs comfortably held their more illustrious opponents for long periods until the Moroccans' superior firepower eventually made the difference.
Shot-stopper Yannick Pandor made a number of other good stops to keep down the score as the match progressed, even though Comoros did have a chance for an equaliser shortly after the first goal, with Rafiki Saïd shooting directly into Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
Injury Concern for Morocco
The victory was partially marred by an injury to the captain, Romain Saïss, who was forced off in the first half apparently in some distress.
The defender had just made his comeback to the national side last month following a lengthy absence caused by a serious ankle operation.
The win extends the team's historic run of consecutive victories to nineteen, surpassing the previous record of 15 set by Spain from 2008 and 2009.
