Morocco opened their Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a controlled 2-0 victory over Comoros, highlighted by Ayoub El Kaabi’s spectacular overhead kick and an earlier finish from Brahim Diaz, as the hosts secured a strong start and three important points in the group phase.
The result continued an impressive AFCON group-stage run for the Atlas Lions, who have now collected 10 wins from their last 12 pool matches, drawing the other two, with that sequence stretching back to a 1-0 defeat to DR Congo in 2017.
Morocco created an early opening when Iyad Mohamed brought down Brahim Diaz inside the area after 11 minutes, yet Soufiane Rahimi’s penalty was saved by Yannick Pandor, who dived low to his right, and the hosts had to rebuild their momentum
after passing up that opportunity.
The pressure from Morocco grew either side of half-time, and the breakthrough eventually arrived 10 minutes into the second period, when Diaz found space at the edge of the box and met Noussair Mazraoui’s low cutback first time, guiding a measured shot beyond Pandor to give the hosts the lead.
Comoros did not fold after falling behind, instead searching for openings on the break, with Rafiki Said driving one dangerous counter-attack and firing a firm low effort towards goal, but Yassine Bounou held the strike and protected Morocco’s narrow advantage.
Pandor continued to keep Comoros competitive with an outstanding double stop, first pushing away a powerful attempt from Mazraoui, then reacting quickly to rise and punch clear Jawad El Yamiq’s follow-up, as Morocco pushed for a second goal to remove any tension from the contest.
Morocco vs Comoros AFCON: El Kaabi’s bicycle kick and data debrief
The insurance goal finally came from substitute Ayoub El Kaabi, who exchanged passes with Anass Salah-Eddine on the edge of the box before meeting the return with an acrobatic bicycle kick that flew past Pandor, a strike that will stand among the most eye-catching efforts of the tournament.
𝐆𝐎𝐀𝐀𝐋 !! Ayoub El Kaabi doubles the lead with a stunning goal #DimaMaghrib pic.twitter.com/nXtjuPRx2Squipe du Maroc (@EnMaroc) December 21, 2025
Although El Kaabi attempted only one shot, that overhead kick decided the match and drew most attention, while underlying numbers showed Morocco creating better chances, recording 2.0 expected goals compared with Comoros’ 0.3 from four attempts across the 90 minutes.
Diaz, who led Morocco in qualifying with seven goals, continued that form by scoring again and winning the early penalty that Rahimi missed, and combined with El Kaabi’s late intervention and Morocco’s strong group record, the hosts leave this opener with momentum and confidence for the rest of their AFCON campaign.
