Morocco head coach Walid Regragui praised his side’s second half response after they began their 2025 AFCON campaign with a 2-0 win over Comoros on Sunday night, SportPremi reports.
The host nations commenced their quest for continental victory as they produced a brilliant second half performance to record a comfortable win over their opponents.
The Atlas Lions headed into the tournament as one of the tournament favorites and sent a warning to their rivals after the statement result.
Morocco earned a penalty kick inside the first 10 minutes after a fast start, but Yannick Pandor saved Rahimi’s effort.
The home side dominated proceedings, but struggled to create much in a very frantic first half affair at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.
However, they were a totally different team after the interval, as they were able to convert their dominance into shots and were soon ahead afterwards.
The impressive Brahim Diaz, who had won the first half penalty, was found in the box by a low cross from Mazraoui and the Real Madrid winger produced a brilliant finish to make the scoreline 1-0 to Morocco.
The Atlas Lions then had several other attempts to increase the scoreline, but Pandor was in superb form in the Comoros goal, producing several saves to deny a second.
It took a spectacular effort to beat him for the second time in the match, as substitute El Kaabi produced a stunning overhead kick and an early goal of the tournament contender, to guide the ball into the net.
Morocco sealed a 2-0 win to kickstart their campaign, as they chase a first African crown since 1976.
What Regragui said after the win
The relieved Walid Regragui, who took over as head coach of the Atlas Lions in 2022, reacted after he guided the team to a 19th consecutive victory.
Speaking after the clash, the 50-year-old expressed satisfaction with the performance and called for more in their next clash.
“It’s never easy to start a tournament. The opening match is always tough. We did the job. We controlled the game in the first half but didn’t create enough chances. There was a lack of presence in the box. We reverted to some of our old faults”, the Atlas Lions boss said.
“We fixed that in the second half with the substitutions and the intensity we showed.
As soon as we scored our two goals, we took control. It’s a good sign. It was important to win the first match in front of our supporters. It’s a great way to start the tournament”, he concluded.
Morocco will next face Mali on the 26th, with eyes on a spot in the knockout round of the competition.
