MOHAMED MORCHID
Riyadh Green. This highly anticipated duel between Morocco (6th in the world) and Iran (5th in the world) kept all its promises, transforming into a high-level tactical confrontation.
The Atlas Lions initially adopted a balanced defensive approach, relying on quick counter-attacks. Goalkeeper Youssef Benasslam stood out by making several decisive saves against Iranian attempts, maintaining the balance of the score.
Iran opened the scoring quickly through Mehdi Karimi in the 13th minute. However, the Moroccan response was not long in coming, Bilal Bakkali equalizing two minutes later (15th), sealing the first half score at (1-1),
At the start of the second half, Mehdi Karimi gave his team the lead again in the 24th minute. Trailing by the score, coach Hicham Dguig took a bold tactical initiative: replacing goalkeeper Youssef Benasslam with Ismail Amzal as a field player (Power Play), with the aim of intensifying the offensive pressure.
This choice paid off, since the talented Soufiane El Mesrar managed to snatch the crucial equalizing goal in the 39th minute (2-2). Thanks to this hard-fought draw, Morocco pockets a precious point before its next meeting against Tajikistan, scheduled for this Thursday, November 6.
