Morocco asserted their dominance early, as they pushed Mali back and nearly took the lead through Brahim Diaz in the 16th minute. Quick play from Walid Regragui’s side saw the Real Madrid attacker fire at goal from inside the box, but it was well saved by Djigui Diarra.
While that was the closest they went in the first half, Ayoub El Kaabi also found himself in a brilliant position but failed to connect properly with his header.
There was still time for a bit of drama, though, as VAR came into play shortly before half-time, when Nathan Gassama had initially avoided punishment for an alleged handball. The decision was overturned, and Diaz made his mark from the spot, sending an unstoppable penalty past Djigui Diarra into the bottom-left corner.
The second half experienced a quiet opening, but tensions quickly boiled over after a delayed VAR call.
Lassine Sinayoko was brought down by Jawad El Yamiq’s clumsy tackle, which gave Mali the perfect chance to equalise – a chance that Sinayoko took with aplomb, when he stepped up to net his ninth international goal.
Morocco looked the more likely to find a winner, as defender Ousmane Camara nervously gave Youssef En Nesyri a great chance to capture the points, only for his effort to be well saved.
The world’s number-11-ranked country pushed the initiative in the final period of the game, but the closest they came was via a Malian player, as Woyo Coulibaly’s last-second header back to his keeper nearly gave it all away in the final seconds.
Despite tonight’s disappointing result, Morocco remain favourites to qualify as group winners. For Mali, a point against one of the tournament favourites is a major result, but they enter their final game clash against Zambia needing a positive result to ensure they qualify.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Brahim Diaz (Morocco)
