Morocco Faces High Stakes in Africa Cup of Nations Opener Against Comoros

The opening match of the CAN Morocco 2025 will pit the Atlas Lions against the Coelacanths on December 21. In a portrait made by France 24 at the beginning of the week, the coach of the Comoros, Stefano Cusin, who knows African football well after having coached the DRC, South Africa, Libya, and South Sudan, said that this match puts pressure on the Moroccan team which plays at home and will have to prove that it remains one of the best on the continent.

"The pressure is on Morocco for this opening match. They reached the semi-finals of the World Cup and beat both Spain and Portugal. We will only know in December whether the draw has been favorable to us or not. The AFCON is known for its surprises, and we must be ready on match day," said the Italian technician, stressing that this is not the first time his team has defended on Moroccan facilities: "In the absence of approved stadiums in the Comoros, we have played almost all of our qualifying matches in Morocco. Before that, I was the coach of South Sudan, and there too we played in Morocco. We will be at home."

Stefano Cusin took over the Coelacanths in 2023, in a context of crisis within the Comorian federation. The 56-year-old technician managed to qualify the Coelacanths for the final phase of the CAN Morocco 2025 as leader of their group at the end of the qualifiers. A first for the country. "Like all African countries, the Comoros is a football nation. Being a small country in terms of population, football offers visibility. People are proud when we beat teams like Ghana or our neighbor Madagascar," said the technician who did not fail to thank the supporters for their support.

The last match between Morocco and the Comoros dates back to the 2022 CAN in Cameroon, the Atlas Lions had won 2-0, in the second group stage match. But that had not prevented the Coelacanths from qualifying for the round of 16 of the competition for the first time in their history. For their part, Walid Regragui and his players remain focused on making a successful home debut and finishing the group stage as leaders, with 3 wins and 9 points. Morocco shares Group A with Zambia, the Comoros and Mali.