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Morocco and South Africa will continue their quest at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations when they square off in a round-of-16 tie at Stade Laurent Pokou on Tuesday.
Both nations are regular AFCON adversaries, with this being the sixth time they will face one another at Africa's showpiece event since 1998.
The Atlas Lions secured their place in the knockout rounds as Group F winners, finishing with seven points from three games. South Africa, meanwhile, qualified as runners-up in Group E with four points to show for their efforts.
Bafana Bafana concluded their group stage campaign with a goalless draw against Tunisia to advance past the group stage for the seventh time in their history.
Morocco's final group game saw them do enough to squeeze out a 1-0 victory over 2012 champions Zambia. Hakim Ziyech was on hand to turn home the rebound in the 37th minute after Achraf Hakimi's initial shot was blocked.
The winner of this tie will face either Cape Verde or Mauritania in the quarterfinal.
Morocco vs South Africa Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- The two sides have clashed on nine occasions in the past and are evenly split down the middle with three wins apiece while three games have ended in draws.
- Their most recent head-to-head game came in June 2023 when South Africa claimed a 2-1 home win in the AFCON qualifiers.
- Morocco have made it to the quarterfinal in two of their last three AFCON appearances.
- South Africa have won just three of their last 13 AFCON tournament games (seven losses).
- South Africa have failed to score in four of their last five internationals.
Morocco vs South Africa Prediction
Morocco captured the world's imagination with their run to the semifinal of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The North Africans have lost just one of the 12 games they have played since Qatar and were arguably the pre-tournament favorites here.
However, they have not made it past the quarterfinal stage of the AFCON since their runners-up finish in 2004. The Lions of Atlas will be boosted by the news of Walid Regragui's presence on the bench, with the 48-year-old's suspension lifted by CAF.
South Africa started off their tournament with a 2-0 opening-day defeat to Mali but bounced back to advance to this stage. Despite being rank outsiders, the 1996 African champions will quietly fancy their chances, having been the team to inflict the only loss suffered by Morocco alluded to earlier (in the qualifiers for AFCON 2023).
The Moroccans are blessed with an embarrassment of riches and have been one of the most cohesive teams in the tournament so far. We are tipping Regragui's side to advance with a narrow win and clean sheet.
Prediction: Morocco 1-0 South Africa
Morocco vs South Africa Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Morocco to win
Tip 2 - Both teams to score: No
Tip 3 - Under 2.5 goals
