Morocco made it two wins from two in AFCON 2027 qualifying with a 2-0 victory over Lesotho on Tuesday in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
Brahim Díaz broke the deadlock just before halftime before Azzedine Ounahi secured the three points with Morocco’s second goal in the 82nd minute.
The result gives Mohamed Ouahbi’s side six points from its opening two Group A qualifiers, following Friday’s 2-0 victory over Gabon in Rabat.
Morocco has now scored four goals without conceding during the opening qualifying window.
Brahim Díaz breaks Lesotho resistance
Morocco controlled long periods of the match at the Free State Toyota Stadium but initially found it difficult to turn its possession into clear chances against a compact Lesotho defence.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 45th minute.
Díaz reacted inside the penalty area after Lesotho failed to clear the danger and finished to put Morocco ahead just before the interval.
The goal gave the Atlas Lions a deserved lead after a first half in which they had dominated the ball without consistently testing Lesotho goalkeeper Sekhoane Moerane.
Ounahi makes it 2-0
Morocco remained in control after the restart but had to wait until the final stages to make the result secure.
Soufiane Rahimi, introduced from the bench, delivered a low ball into the area in the 82nd minute.
Ounahi met it first time and finished past the goalkeeper to make it 2-0.
The midfielder was replaced shortly afterwards by Soufian El-Faouzi, with Morocco seeing out the remaining minutes without allowing Lesotho back into the contest.
Ouahbi makes changes to the starting XI
Ouahbi selected a midfield-heavy starting team for Morocco’s second qualifier.
Yassine Bounou started in goal, with Noussair Mazraoui, Zakaria El Ouahdi, Issa Diop and Abdelhamid Aït Boudlal in defence.
Neil El Aynaoui, Oussama Targhalline and Ounahi featured in midfield, while Ismael Saibari, Bilal El Khannouss and Díaz completed the starting eleven.
The lineup reflected the depth available in the Morocco squad selected for the September international window.
Ouahbi also used the second half to make several changes.
Abde Ezzalzouli replaced El Aynaoui in the 68th minute, while Rahimi came on for Díaz one minute later.
Hakimi returns from injury
The match also brought an important return for Achraf Hakimi.
The Morocco captain began the game on the bench after recently dealing with a right-thigh injury.
He entered in the 69th minute, replacing Mazraoui, and completed the closing stages as Morocco protected its lead.
It was Hakimi’s first competitive appearance since sustaining the injury earlier in September.
Tawfik Bentayeb and Soufian El-Faouzi were also introduced late in the match.
Two matches, two wins, two clean sheets
Morocco’s opening AFCON 2027 qualifying window has now produced a straightforward set of numbers:
Morocco 2-0 Gabon
Lesotho 0-2 Morocco
That means six points, four goals scored and zero conceded through the first two matches.
Against Gabon, Noussair Mazraoui opened the scoring before Rahimi added the second.
Against Lesotho, the goals came from Díaz and Ounahi.
The identity of the four scorers also gives Ouahbi an encouraging spread of contributions across defence, midfield and attack.
Morocco starting XI vs Lesotho
Goalkeeper: Yassine Bounou
Defenders: Zakaria El Ouahdi, Issa Diop, Abdelhamid Aït Boudlal, Noussair Mazraoui
Midfield and attack: Oussama Targhalline, Neil El Aynaoui, Azzedine Ounahi, Ismael Saibari, Bilal El Khannouss, Brahim Díaz
Morocco had travelled to Bloemfontein as part of an opening qualifying schedule that also included the home meeting with Gabon. Atlas Lions Insider previously outlined the Morocco-Gabon and Lesotho-Morocco opening fixtures.
What comes next for Morocco?
With the two AFCON qualifiers completed, Morocco’s attention now turns to a friendly against Ghana on October 4 in Tangier.
That match will give Ouahbi another opportunity to assess his squad and potentially give minutes to players who featured less prominently against Gabon and Lesotho.
The competitive work from this window, however, is complete.
Morocco leaves the opening two rounds with maximum points and consecutive clean sheets as the qualification campaign begins to take shape.
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