Morocco are looking to make it two wins from two in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers after taking the lead against Lesotho at the Free State Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
Brahim Diaz opened the scoring shortly before half-time after Morocco had dominated possession and created several opportunities. The goal came when Azzedine Ounahi’s pass found El Aynaoui inside the penalty area. A defender blocked the ball, but it fell to Diaz, who finished from close range.
The result would strengthen Morocco’s position in Group A after their opening 2-0 victory over Gabon. That match was settled by Noussair Mazraoui, who scored in the 36th minute, and Soufiane Rahimi, who completed the win late in the game following a pass from Bilal El Khannouss.
Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi made significant changes to his starting XI for the meeting with Lesotho. Ismael Saibari returned from suspension and was included from the start, while Achraf Hakimi began on the bench, apparently having been rested.
Abdelhamid Ait Boudlal and Zakaria El Ouahdi came into the defence, Oussama Targhalline was selected in midfield and El Khannouss started on the left wing. Nayef Aguerd was unavailable, while Ayyoub Bouaddi and Ez Abde were named among the substitutes.
Morocco had already gone close several times before Diaz found the breakthrough. El Ouahdi and Ounahi were unable to convert earlier openings, while Ounahi later set up El Aynaoui in the area. After the ball was deflected back to him, Diaz made no mistake.
Mazraoui created another chance when he found Ounahi at the penalty spot. Ounahi struck powerfully, but his effort narrowly cleared the crossbar.
El Khannouss also delivered a dangerous free-kick which Issa Diop headed just wide of Sekhoane Moerane’s goal. The Lesotho goalkeeper appeared beaten as the effort went past the post. Another foul then gave Morocco a further promising set-piece opportunity, although the delivery was cleared comfortably with a header.
Morocco also appealed for a challenge in the area, but the referee judged the contact to be legal. The television angle did not make the incident entirely clear.
A Moroccan player produced an excellent piece of skill to create room for a shot inside the penalty area but failed to hit the target. At the far post, a right-back met a cross from Ounahi, only to send his effort into the side-netting.
Lesotho reached the group stage after coming through the preliminary round, where they qualified against the Seychelles. The Crocodiles began their campaign with a narrow 2-1 defeat by Niger in Accra, Ghana.
Morocco had won their previous two meetings with Lesotho. In September 2024, Diaz scored in the 90th+3 minute to secure a 1-0 victory in Agadir during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. Two months later in Oujda, Morocco won 7-0, with Diaz scoring a hat-trick and Rahimi adding two goals.