Hosts Morocco began their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign in emphatic fashion on Sunday, defeating Kenya 4-0 in Rabat, while Algeria secured a 2-0 victory over Senegal in the tournament’s opening fixture.
Morocco, runners-up at the previous edition after surrendering a two-goal lead to Nigeria in the final, underlined their title ambitions with a dominant display against the Harambee Starlets at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium.
The Atlas Lionesses effectively settled the contest before the break, with Sakina Ouzraoui Diki, Maryame Atiq and Ibtissam Jraïdi all finding the net in the opening half. Jraïdi completed her brace shortly after the restart to cap an impressive team performance.
Ouzraoui Diki broke the deadlock in the 19th minute, finishing calmly after collecting a well-weighted through pass from Yasmin Mrabet.
Atiq doubled the lead 10 minutes later with a powerful header from a corner before Jraïdi nodded home Hanane Aït El Haj’s cross three minutes later as Kenya’s defence struggled to cope.
Despite making six saves during the encounter, goalkeeper Lilian Awuor received little support from the backline as Morocco consistently created chances and controlled possession throughout the match.
Kenya introduced three substitutes at half-time in an effort to contain the hosts, but the changes had little effect. Just a minute into the second half, Jraïdi headed in another superb delivery from stand-in captain Aït El Haj to complete the scoring.
Although the atmosphere lacked the intensity seen during Morocco’s previous WAFCON campaigns on home soil, head coach Jorge Vilda will be pleased with his side’s fluid attacking play, tactical discipline and ruthless finishing.
Earlier in the day, Algeria opened their campaign with a 2-0 victory over Senegal at the Rabat Olympic Stadium to strengthen their hopes of reaching the knockout stage for a second consecutive tournament.
The contest remained evenly balanced for much of the first half before Algeria captain Marine Dafeur converted from the penalty spot in the 42nd minute after Korka Fall was judged to have fouled Amira Braham inside the area.
Senegal believed they deserved a penalty in the second half when substitute Sokhna Pene went down following a challenge from Lana Smits, but the Video Assistant Referee declined to overturn the referee’s decision.
Debutant Melissa Bethi sealed Algeria’s victory in the 88th minute, taking advantage of Khady Faye’s poor clearance before calmly evading a defender and finishing past the Senegal goalkeeper.
The result extended Algeria’s impressive defensive record, with goalkeeper Chloe N’Gazi and the Fennecs now keeping clean sheets in their last five WAFCON matches, a streak dating back to 2018.
“We gave our opponents too much space,” Senegal head coach Mame Moussa Cissé told CAF. “We lost this match because of the individual errors we made. We will analyse what worked, take the necessary lessons from this performance, and shift our focus to the next match.
“We now have to regroup and make sure we beat Kenya.”
Senegal and Kenya will face each other on Thursday at the Rabat Olympic Stadium as both sides seek their first points of the tournament. Morocco, meanwhile, will take on regional rivals Algeria at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in a highly anticipated Group A clash.
Group B action begins on Monday with defending champions South Africa facing Tanzania at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca, while Ivory Coast will meet Burkina Faso at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium.
