Host nation Morocco kicked off its 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign with an impressive 2-0 win over Comoros at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat on Sunday night.
The opening ceremony began with a showcase of Moroccan culture before Afrobeats superstar David ‘Davido’ Adeleke and Moroccan-American singer French Montana performed the new AFCON soundtrack to thousands of fans inside the sold-out 67,500-capacity stadium.
Eleven minutes into the opener, Soufiane Rahimi had the chance to put Morocco in the lead after the hosts were awarded a penalty following a foul on Brahim Diaz inside the 18-yard box.
However, Rahimi’s effort was saved by goalkeeper Yannick Pandor.
Picking up from where he left off during the qualifiers, in which he finished as top scorer with seven goals, Diaz finally gave Morocco the deserved lead ten minutes into the second half.
A series of team play from the Moroccans’ half resulted in the ball finding Noussair Mazraoui inside the Comoros’ box before the Manchester United player laid a through pass to Diaz, who fired home past Pandor from close range to send cities across Morocco into a state of agog.
In the 74th minute, the hosts doubled their advantage through Ayoub El Kaabi, who pounced home an outrageous overhead kick from Anass Salah-Eddine’s cross to seal the victory for Morocco.
Speaking ahead of this game, Morocco national team head coach Walid Regragui said the team’s objective is to win the AFCON for the second time since 1976, and there is no better way to begin the quest than with an emphatic victory against Comoros.