Ayoub El Kaabi's Breathtaking Goal Caps The Atlas Lions' Victory Against Comoros in Africa Cup of Nations Opener.

The the Moroccan side shook off a nervy start to defeat Comoros in the tournament's inaugural fixture on the weekend, after strikes by the Real Madrid attacker and substitute El Kaabi in the latter period.

It was a hardly emphatic display, however, from the highly fancied Moroccans, who sit 97 places above the small Indian Ocean nation in the FIFA rankings and had to work tirelessly for the victory in wet conditions at Rabat's Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium.

Tense Start and Missed Chances

The hosts missed an early penalty and were goalless at the interval despite dominating the ball, eventually opening the scoring in the 55th minute.

The goal arrived after Noussair Mazraoui did well to keep the ball in play before slipping it square for Díaz to calmly pass home.

“The first match is invariably tough but we delivered in the second half,” commented Morocco coach Walid Regragui.

El Kaabi's Moment of Magic

Any lingering nerves was subsequently extinguished by a piece of sheer individual brilliance from substitute El Kaabi. Just ten minutes after coming on, the striker met a cross with a acrobatic bicycle kick in the 74th minute, doubling and sealing the result.

Before that, the hosts might have taken the lead in the 11th minute after a spot-kick was awarded for a challenge on Díaz. Yet, Soufiane Rahimi penalty was kept out by Comoros goalkeeper Pandor.

Comoros Resistance and Second-Half Opportunity

Comoros comfortably held their more illustrious opponents for long periods before the Moroccans' superior firepower eventually told.

Goalkeeper Pandor made a number of further fine saves to keep down the scoreline as the match wore on, even though his team did have a chance for an equalizer shortly after the first goal, with Rafiki Saïd shooting straight at Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.

Injury Worry for Morocco

The three points was somewhat marred by an apparent injury to Morocco's skipper, Saïss, who limped off after the 18th minute apparently in tears.

This defender had just returned to the international setup recently following a year’s absence caused by a serious ankle operation.

This result continues Morocco's record-breaking run of successive victories to nineteen, beating the old best of 15 set by Spain from 2008 and 2009.