The Royal Army Club secured its place deservedly in the group stage of the African Confederation Cup competition after achieving an important victory over its guest, Ivory Coast’s Korhogo, with a result of two goals to one. The match took place yesterday evening, Saturday, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat, as part of the second preliminary round second leg of the continental tournament.
The match started with intense offensive pressure from the military team, resulting in an early penalty kick in the 6th minute after a clear foul on player Youssef Al-Fahli inside the penalty area. Al-Fahli successfully executed the penalty, giving the Royal Army the first goal. The Moroccan team continued their attempts to strengthen the lead, but the final touch was missing on several occasions. Meanwhile, the Ivorian team tried to threaten goalkeeper Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti’s goal but to no avail, ending the first half with the Royal Army leading 1-0.
At the beginning of the second half, Korhogo came back strongly and managed to equalize in the 54th minute through their player Gouti Deby, bringing the match back to level and igniting the competition. The Royal Army responded quickly, requesting a penalty after an intervention on Ahmed Hammoudan in the 58th minute, but the referee decided to continue play, a decision that caused some controversy.
The match continued intensely between the two teams, and as the final minutes approached, substitute Anas Bach succeeded in scoring the valuable second goal for the Royal Army in the 83rd minute. This goal returned the lead to the home team and brought them closer to securing the qualification spot, ending the match with a deserved victory for the military team by two goals to one. With this result, the Royal Army qualified for the group stage on aggregate, as the first leg had ended in a goalless draw.
