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AFCON 2025 begins on Sunday 21 December in Rabat, with Morocco and Comoros opening Group A at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium. This tournament is being staged over Christmas and New Year for the first time, and Morocco’s first night as hosts will be watched like an audit.

On paper, it is a mismatch. Morocco are the highest ranked team in Africa, built around Champions League level starters and a squad that carries itself like a contender. Comoros are back at AFCON for only the second time, drawn largely from the diaspora and the French football system, and priced in the market as a minnows.

But opening matches have a way of exposing what a team is, not what it says it is. Morocco start with home advantage, expectation, and a familiar burden: the gap between their global reputation and their AFCON outcomes.

The context Morocco cannot escape

Morocco have not won AFCON since 1976. That is the headline no amount of squad value can silence.They arrive with recent validation, including their World Cup run, and with state-backed infrastructure that signals ambition, not just for this tournament but for Morocco’s place in the global game.

The venue fits the moment. Prince Moulay Abdellah is Morocco’s new national stadium, designed for major nights and built to project competence ahead of bigger hosting responsibilities. It is expected to be loud, enclosed, and emotionally charged in a way that can help the hosts or tighten their legs.

This is why the opening match matters beyond three points. Morocco need a start that calms the room and sets a tone for the group, where Mali and Zambia will present more athletic and tactical resistance.

Comoros arrive with a clear identity

Comoros’ qualification was not a charity gift. They topped a qualifying group ahead of Tunisia, and their recent AFCON history includes a debut run in 2021 that became part sporting achievement, part folklore.

They are also a modern national team in the purest sense. The squad is foreign-based, built through diaspora pathways, and it plays with the cohesion you often see when players have fought for the badge rather than inherited it.

Stefano Cusin’s messaging has been consistent: no fear, no ceiling, and no internal acceptance of the “third-division” label. It is a psychological approach that matters in games like this, where the first twenty minutes can decide whether the underdog is simply surviving or genuinely competing.

How the match is likely to look

Morocco will have the ball for long spells. That is not a prediction, it is the structure of the game. Comoros are most comfortable in a low block, likely a 5-4-1, narrowing central lanes and forcing Morocco wide. Morocco, meanwhile, have the personnel to create overloads on both flanks and to recycle attacks until the defensive line bends.

The key question is not whether Morocco can dominate possession. It is whether they can turn dominance into clean chances without playing in a hurry.

Morocco’s attacking problem is usually time, not talent

When Morocco struggle in AFCON, it often looks like this: a good team playing as if it has to score immediately, and then losing its spacing. You start seeing hopeful early crosses, rushed shots from the edge, and transitions conceded because the rest defence is stretched.

Walid Regragui has built an elite competitive machine over the last two years, and the recent results underline it. But competitive streaks do not score goals against a deep block. Patience does.

This is where Brahim Díaz matters. He offers a way through the middle that is not dependent on winning a duel out wide. He receives in tight areas, he can play the final pass, and he can finish actions himself. Reuters also flagged him among the key attacking pieces in this squad, alongside the usual headline names.

And then there is Achraf Hakimi, who is not just an outlet, but a tempo-setter from right-back. Morocco have included him despite a recent ankle sprain, and Regragui has sounded confident about his readiness. Reuters If he is truly fit, Morocco’s right side becomes the game’s main stress point.

Comoros’ plan is simple, but it is not passive

The underdog mistake is to defend without a route out. Comoros do have one: vertical counters, especially through their wide runners and the first ball into a target forward who can draw fouls and buy breath.

They will try to do three things:

1. keep the centre compact,
   
2. win second balls around the first clearance,
   
3. break quickly before Morocco can counter-press.
   

Comoros’ squad includes several players with experience across European leagues, and Reuters’ preview notes highlighted names like Myziane Maolida and Faiz Selemani as part of their threat profile.Even if the best-known Comorian story remains El Fardou Ben Nabouhane, the veteran scorer who gives them belief that a single chance can become history.

The tactical hinge points

1) Set pieces will decide whether Morocco have to sweat

Morocco’s cleanest path is the ugliest: an early corner, a near-post run, a header, and then the whole match changes. It forces Comoros to step out, and it turns Morocco’s possession into something more open and manageable.

Comoros cannot afford cheap fouls in wide areas, and they cannot switch off on second phase deliveries. If Morocco score early, it will probably start with dead-ball organisation rather than a 20-pass move.

2) Morocco’s rest defence vs Comoros’ first counter

Comoros are not going to counter 15 times. They might counter four. What matters is whether the first counter makes Morocco doubt their own aggression.

Morocco’s midfield balance is important here. Sofyan Amrabat gives them security and a reference point when the ball turns over. Reuters named him among the key midfielders in the squad, and he is exactly the kind of player who stops a “small” team from believing the game is there for the taking

3) The crowd can either pull Morocco forward or pull them apart

The new stadium is designed to amplify atmosphere, and Rabat will bring noise. The danger is when the crowd starts demanding speed instead of quality. Morocco do not need to play faster. They need to play cleaner.

Key players in focus

Morocco: three player cards

• Achraf Hakimi (RB/RWB, PSG)
  If fit, he gives Morocco width, recovery pace, and a constant final-third presence. His availability after the ankle sprain is a major story of the opener.
  
• Brahim Díaz (AM/FW, Real Madrid)
  A solution player. Morocco need someone who can operate between lines and turn sterile possession into shots.
  
• Yassine Bounou (GK)
  In a match where Morocco might face only a handful of shots, his importance is concentration and authority. A single moment can swing openers.
  

Comoros: three player cards

• El Fardou Ben Nabouhane (FW)
  The veteran reference point and the name most associated with Comoros’ AFCON breakthrough.
  
• Myziane Maolida (FW)
  Identified in Reuters’ group profile as one of Comoros’ key players. He offers pace and a direct threat when the game opens.
  
• Faiz Selemani (FW/W)
  Another Reuters-highlighted name, useful for transitions and for carrying the ball into relief zones.

What each team must do

Morocco must do three things

1. Score first, but do not chase it.
   Morocco should treat the opening half-hour like a controlled siege, not an emergency.
   
2. Keep their spacing behind the ball.
   If both full-backs are high, the midfield has to hold shape. Comoros are waiting for one loose pass.
   
3. Use the box properly.
   If the ball goes wide, Morocco need runs across the line and bodies attacking the six-yard area. Deep blocks survive when crosses are uncontested.
   

Comoros must do three things

1. Defend the first wave and the first set pieces.
   The opening fifteen minutes will be their hardest period. If they reach halftime level, pressure moves.
   
2. Make their counters count as events.
   Even one shot on target, one corner, one moment where Morocco have to sprint back, changes the match’s emotional temperature.
   
3. Stay disciplined with fouls and clearances.
   Cheap restarts keep Morocco in rhythm. Comoros need exits, not repeated defending.
   

Threads to watch

• Hakimi’s first sprint: you will know quickly whether he is fully ready.
  
• Morocco’s chance quality: if the shots are mostly from range, Comoros are winning their game.
  
• Comoros’ first breakaway: it will tell you whether Morocco’s control is real or cosmetic.
  
• The crowd’s patience: if Morocco keep circulating without panic, they will eventually create. If they rush, Comoros’ belief grows.
  

Prediction, stated carefully

Morocco should win. They have too much technical quality, too much width, and too much experience in top-level environments for this to become a pure underdog story.

But Comoros are not here to be polite. They have already qualified in a way that suggests organisation and belief, and they are comfortable being the team nobody enjoys playing.

The most likely shape is a Morocco win by one or two goals, with the match decided by either an early set piece or a second-half breakthrough after sustained pressure.

And if Morocco do not score early, that is not a crisis. It is simply the moment the opener becomes what it always threatens to become: a test of the host’s nerve.