El Kaabi's Breathtaking Strike Caps The Atlas Lions' Win Against the Coelacanths in Afcon Opening Match.

The the Moroccan side overcame a jittery start to overcome Comoros in the tournament's opening game on Sunday, after strikes by the Real Madrid attacker and substitute El Kaabi in the second half.

This constituted a less than dominant performance, however, from the strongly favored hosts, who sit 97 places higher than the small island nation in the world rankings and were forced to work tirelessly for the three points in wet conditions at the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium.

Tense Beginning and Missed Opportunities

The hosts failed to convert an first-half spot-kick and were locked at 0-0 at half-time even with dominating the ball, finally opening the scoring in the 55th minute.

It arrived after full-back Mazraoui showed great skill to prevent the ball from going out before slipping it across for Brahim Díaz to calmly pass home.

“The opening game is invariably tough but we came good in the second period,” commented Morocco coach Regragui.

The Substitute's Piece of Brilliance

The tension was subsequently extinguished by a moment of pure genius from Ayoub El Kaabi. Just 10 minutes after coming on, the forward connected with 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 ahead in the 11th minute after a spot-kick was awarded for a foul on Díaz. However, Soufiane Rahimi effort was saved by keeper Yannick Pandor.

The Visitors' Defiant Stand and Second-Half Opportunity

Comoros comfortably held their more illustrious opponents for long periods before the hosts' greater quality eventually made the difference.

Shot-stopper Pandor made a number of further fine saves to keep down the scoreline as the match wore on, although his team did have a clear opportunity for an equaliser shortly after the first goal, with Saïd firing directly into Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.

Fitness Worry for Hosts

The three points was partially overshadowed by an injury to Morocco's skipper, Romain Saïss, who limped off after the first half apparently in some distress.

The centre-back had only returned to the international setup last month following a year’s layoff caused by ankle surgery.

The win extends the team's historic run of successive victories to nineteen, surpassing the old record of 15 set by Spain from 2008 and 2009.