Morocco boss Walid Regragui promised us Achraf Hakimi would make an appearance during the third pool match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. And he duly appeared in the second-half. Let the tournament commence!

Achraf Hakimi entered the Cup of Nations fray on Monday night as Morocco cruised into the last-16 with a 3-0 win over Zambia.

Uganda boss Paul Put called on his players to embrace their tags as underdogs in their all-or-nothing Africa Cup of Nations clash against Nigeria on Tuesday night in Fez.

Star defender and skipper Achraf Hakimi will play in Morocco’s final Group A game against Zambia on Monday, his coach Walid Regragui confirmed on the eve of the tie at the Stade Prince Moulay Abdellah in Rabat.

Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi is set to return to action for his team’s final group stage match against Zambia, having recovered from an ankle injury that sidelined him for nearly two months.

Moroccan national treasure Achraf Hakimi will play football for his country on Day 8 after spending the last week or so hanging out with his teammates but not gracing the right flank. All roads lead to the coronation party. 

Tunisia boss Sami Trabelsi on Sunday backed his players to recover from a nightmare 75 minutes against Nigeria during which they conceded three goals and rediscover their panache for the final Group C game on Tuesday against Tanzania.

Nigeria coach Eric Chelle admitted on Sunday the last 15 minutes of his side’s Africa Cup of Nations game against Tunisia was the stuff of nightmares.

Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) shared the spoils on Saturday in Tangier to maintain the drama in Group D over the identity of the  pool winners following Benin’s victory over Botswana.

The Africa Cup of Nations will be staged every four years following an edition planned for 2028 in a major change to what is currently a biennial showpiece, African football chief Patrice Motsepe announced on Saturday.