AFCON: Diaz winner sends Morocco into quarter-final

Morocco secured a dominant 1-0 victory over Tanzania in their round of 16 encounter on Sunday to progress into the quarter final stage of the Africa Cup of Nations AFCON 2025.

The AFCON hosts were too good for a defense Tanzania side that looked to catch their more superior opponents on the counter, with Brahim Diaz breaking their resolve in the second half.

Captain Achraf Hakimi returned from injury to start for Morocco, with the high-scoring duo of Ayoub El Kaabi and Diaz leading the attack.

Morocco dominated the first half with over 70% possession and had a goal ruled out for offside in the 15th minute. They did not test the goalkeeper further as both sides went into the break goalless.

The Atlas Lions further increased the tempo in the second half with El Kaabi wasting a glorious opportunity, before Diaz took matters into his hands on 64 minutes. The Real Madrid attacker collected Hakimi’s pass and stepped beyond a defender before he squeezed a low shot beyond goalkeeper Hussein Masalanga at his near post for 1-0.

Diaz became the first Moroccan player to score in four consecutive AFCON matches, and is currently the outright leading AFCON ’25 goalscorer with four goals.

There was controversy in the final minutes as referee Boubou Traoré deemed a duel in Morocco’s penalty area not enough to award a penalty, leading to complaint from Tanzanian players and their technical bench.

The complaints did not yield a positive outcome and Morocco’s win was confirmed at the final whistle, the hosts qualifying for their ninth appearance in the AFCON quarter final stage.

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