Pre-match hands shake Gambia vs. Morocco/photo:MSJoof
|
Morocco
had put two into the Gambian post in both halves, but the central referee
decided otherwise.
With
Morocco pushing forward and spending most of the first period in Gambia’s half,
the home side rather put up a defensive approach and prepared to hit Morocco
with a counter attacking tactic.
While
Morocco wasted more than four chances in the first quarter of the game, the
Scorpions Abdou Jammeh punished them with a near post header resulting from
midfielder Demba Savage’s free-kick in the 14th minute.
Two
minutes later, Morocco responded with what could have been an equalizer when
Yassine Salhi fired a low shot pass Gambian goalkeeper Christopher Allen, but
the Cameroonian central referee decided Salhi was offside.
The
scorpions who like the Moroccans have had dismal performances in competitions
headed for the dressing room with a rear lead at half time.
Both
teams returned into the pitch eager to score the second goal which was likely
to decide the results of the game.
While
Gambian skipper Mustapha Jarju saw his 53rd minute free-kick easily
handled by Morocco’s goalkeeper Nadir Lamyaghri, Morocco’s substitute Hamza
Abourazzouk saw his near post back heel flicked beside the post for a corner
kick in the 64th minute.
The
quest for a goal compelled the Moroccan Coach Eric Gerets to introduce two
players before the second half even kick-off.
With
15 minutes to go, the moment the visitors waited for arrived. Captain Houssine
Kharja neatly taped the ball into the far bottom corner of the post to give his
side a prestigious 1-1 draw in the 75th minute.
The
fourth official gave three minutes of injury time and in the 91st
minute Morocco had another goal disallowed after Youssef El Arabi was caught
offside before putting the ball into Gambia’s net.
New
entrant and Real Zaragoza youngster Saihou Gassama could have sealed a vital
win for Gambia when he shoot high from close range Demba Savage’s flick a
minute later.
Meanwhile
Ivory Coast won Tanzania 2-0 in the other Group C match with goals from
champion league winners Solomon Kalu and team captain Didier Drogba.
The Scorpions of The Gambia will take on the Taifa
Stars of Tanzania
in Darussalam on June 10, while group favourite the Elephants of Ivory Coast
travel to Rabat to take on the Atlas Lions of Morocco on June 9.
By Modou S. Joof
Follow on Twitter: @thenorthbankeve
Follow on Facebook: The-North-Bank-Evening-Standard
No comments:
Post a Comment
The views expressed in this section are the authors' own. It does not represent The North Bank Evening Standard (TNBES)'s editorial policy. Also, TNBES is not responsible for content on external links.