Morocco’s U23 national team was crowned champions of the Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations (CAN U23) after beating Egypt in the final 2-1 after extra time.
The competition, which started on June 24, ended on Saturday July 8 with hosts Morocco facing Egypt in the final.
In this thrilling final, it was Egypt who opened the scoring early in the 10th minute through Mahmoud Hassan. However, eight minutes later, Mahmoud Hassan was sent off after being shown a red card, leaving the Pharaohs shorthanded.
Despite this situation, the Egyptians held on until the 37th minute when Yanis Begraoui scored the equalizer for Morocco to make it 1-1 at the break.
Upon returning from the locker room, the Egyptians managed to contain the Moroccan attacks until the end of regulation time, thus forcing extra time. However, playing with 10, the Pharaohs ended up giving in again during added time in the first half of extra time, with a second goal from the Atlas Cubs signed Oussama Targhalline. No other goals were scored until the end of extra time. The final score of 2-1 therefore gave victory to Morocco, which thus won the CAN U23 2023 which it organized on its soil.
This victory is a historic moment for Morocco’s U23 national team and marks an important milestone in the development of football in the country.
Morocco thus joins the list of African countries that have won the AFCON U23, demonstrating the talent and potential of young players in the region.
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