Morocco vs Cape Verde

Morocco and Cape Verde are set to trade tackles at the Stade Prince Moulay Abdallah in an all-CAF international friendly.

Morocco may have failed to bring home a medal from the Qatar World Cup, but they won the hearts of football enthusiasts around the globe with a surprising fourth-place finish over leaving the likes of Portugal and Spain in the wake during the knockout stages. However, complacency has seemingly infiltrated Walid Regragui’s ranks in the aftermath, with the ‘Atalas Lions’ clocking up just one win from five outings (D1, L3) in 2023. There’s a more pressing matter to address than just a lack of results, considering Morocco failed to get on the scoresheet four times during that five-game sequence. The impending home return bodes well for Regragui’s bid to get his team back on the rails, with the Moroccans beating a star-studded Brazil side 2-1 at home in March before sharing the spoils with Peru in a goalless draw.

In the meantime, Cape Verde won’t be surprised to see the odds firmly stacked against them in Rabat despite coming into proceedings unbeaten in their last four internationals (W3, D1). Back-to-back clean sheets in the run-up to this trip could further boost their effort to upset the odds after losing their two most recent meetings with Morocco without scoring. Indeed, Bubista’s men have turned their fortunes around in the warm-up for this fixture, going from three consecutive away defeats to two straight victories on the road, both of which came by a single-goal margin. With winning strikes on both occasions coming within the opening 15 minutes of the second half, the traveling fans may have to showcase patience in Rabat.