With star man Achraf Hakimi returning from injury, Morocco will carry a lot of expectation into their first game of the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday, which will be played in the country.
The biggest rivals for Morocco at the AFCON, which begins on January 18 with the final match against Senegal, are Mohamed Salah’s Egypt, the reigning champions of the year, and Victor Osimhen’s Nigerian side.
Morocco, the best team in Africa’s 11th place, will face the minnows Comoros at Rabat’s new 69, 000-seat Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium on Sunday at 1900 GMT.
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The Atlas Lions, who are semi-finalists in the 2022 World Cup and who have won 18 games in a row, are under a lot of pressure.
Coach Walid Regragui reaffirmed on Saturday that his goal is to win the AFCON at home in front of the fans.
Morocco will face the most difficulty in winning the AFCON because of the expectations placed on them, he said despite their attempts to win the title for the first time since 1976.
Anything less than victory will fail, according to the statement.
Hakimi, the African player of the year, hasn’t played since early November when he was injured in his ankle, and the Paris Saint-Germain right-back says he’s prepared to play.
Hakimi remarked, “I feel good,” even though Regragui acknowledged that the former Real Madrid player may not play against the Comoros and that Mali and Zambia will be the starting opponents for Group A matches.
Hakimi continued, “I don’t think about me as a person.” If the team wins after just one minute, that’s fine.
Morocco has won a number of recent games with good luck, including the recent Under-20 World Cup, and the nation’s victory over Jordan in the FIFA Arab Cup final this week, which drew cheerleaders to the streets.
crammed into a calendar
As Morocco hosts its first AFCON since 1988, this competition also aims to highlight some world-class stadiums.
One of four stadiums in Rabat is the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, which will also host the final.
As the nation prepares for the 2030 World Cup, which it will co-host with Spain and Portugal, a sizable 75-kilo stadium in Tangier will host a semi-final, and games will also be played in Casablanca, Marrakech, Agadir, and Fez.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) was forced to postpone its main competition as a result of FIFA’s expanded Club World Cup’s expansion in June and July.
Due to the new UEFA Champions League format, they were unable to hold the Cup of Nations in January and February, and they were unable to hold it until June 20th due to the World Cup.
Egypt is in the lead according to Salah.
The only option was to begin in December and continue into the new year at a time when many European leagues, home to so many African stars, are shut down.
Patrice Motsepe, president of the Confederation of African Football, made the announcement on Saturday that the Cup of Nations would be played every four years following a planned 2018 edition. He also acknowledged the need to address the scheduling issue.
According to Motsepe, “we want to ensure that there is more synchronization” and that “the global football calendar is more harmonious.”
Morocco are aiming to emulate Ivory Coast’s success as hosts of the AFCON in 2024.
Algeria won the region’s four of the last five competitions, including the region’s 2019 edition, in Egypt.
How likely are Egypt’s chances of capturing a record-extending eighth title as a result of the doubts surrounding Salah’s future at Liverpool?
Senegal, which defeated Senegal in 2022 and had a squad that included Iliman Ndiaye and Sadio Mane, faces a strong challenge elsewhere.
Nigeria, who finished second last year, will make amends for the fact that it did not qualify for the World Cup.
Ghana and Cape Verde, on the other hand, are both scheduled to play in Morocco.
Following Sunday’s opening game, there will be three matches on Monday, including Egypt versus Zimbabwe and South Africa versus Angola.
Source: Channels TV
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