AFCON 2021: Salim Boina shines as wasteful Morocco beats Comoros to reach knockout stage

Comoros goalkeeper Salim Ben Boina was the star of the match as Morocco defeated the 2-0 in their second match in Group C at the AFCON 2021.

Two goals in either half from Salim Amallah and Zakaria Aboukhlal gave the Atlas Lions their second win of the tournament and a ticket to the round of 16.

Comoros' goalkeeper Boina made seven saves, including a late penalty but could not stop his country from another AFCON 2021 defeat as Morocco proved just too strong for the debutants.

Morocco takes charge of Group C after that victory with six points, three more than second-placed Gabon, who faces Ghana later on in the other group game.

After kicking off their AFCON 2021 campaign with a narrow win over Ghana in their opening match, Morocco went into the game against Comoros hoping to win back-to-back games in the AFCON in successive editions since doing so in 2004.

The North African expectedly started on a positive and dominant note as they looked to kill off Comoros as quickly as possible.

Morocco piled on the pressure early on and was rewarded when a solo effort from Amallah put them ahead in the 16th minute.

It quickly became a one-sided affair as Morocco completely dominated their counterparts, the Coelacanths from Comoros looking to add to the scoreline.

However, they met a wall in Boina, who stopped everything thrown at him as the first half ended 1-0 in favour of Morocco.

In the second 45, Morocco and Boina continued from where they stopped in the first as it became a game between the Moroccans and the French-based, fifth tier goalkeeper.

Comoros had their own chances but lacked the cutting edge to hurt Morocco's rearguard as time went by.

With seven minutes left to play, Morocco had another chance to beat Boina in goal when the referee awarded them a penalty. But true to form, Boina once again proved his heroics was no fluke as he expertly denied Youssef En-Nesyri.

Five minutes later, Morocco finally beat Boina through Aboukhlal but still needed the help of the VAR following more outstanding efforts from the shot-stopper, who did all he could to stop the ball from crossing the line.

In the end, a deserved and worthy win for the Atlas Lions, they could have won by a bigger margin but will take the win and three points that see them sit comfortably at the top of Group C, while Comoros remains at the foot of the table.