Ahmad 
The Moroccan national team achieved its second consecutive victory in the African qualifiers, defeating its Zambian guest 2-1 in the city of Agadir, as part of the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
The match took place on the field of Adrar Stadium in its third round in the fifth group competitions, and witnessed a noticeable superiority for the hosts, who controlled the course of the match for most of its periods.
During the first half, Hakim Ziyech took advantage of a penalty kick awarded to his colleague Youssef En-Nesyri after he was obstructed inside the penalty area, scoring the first goal in the fifth minute.
Despite Morocco’s attempts to strengthen the score, the goals remained limited until the 67th minute, when Elias Ben Sghir was able to score with a powerful shot, taking advantage of an accurate back pass from Dias.
Zambian player Edward Chilufya was able to reduce the gap by scoring his team’s only goal in the 80th minute, which restored hope to the visitors, but Morocco maintained its lead until the final whistle.
Morocco now leads the group with six points, expanding the gap to three points over its rivals Zambia, Niger and Tanzania, while Congo remains without points in last place.
The Moroccan national team has faced its Zambian counterpart in 18 matches before, as the Atlas Lions won on 10 occasions and lost on 6 occasions, while two matches ended in a draw. The Moroccan national team also scored 23 goals in its confrontations against Zambia, while Zambia scored 18 goals.
In the Africa Cup of Nations matches, the two teams faced each other on 4 different occasions, with Morocco winning twice, losing once, and drawing another time. Hakim Ziyech, the current Moroccan national team player, is considered the historical top scorer in the two teams’ matches with two goals.
Morocco will host the 2025 African Cup of Nations with modified dates