CAN 2nd Day Round-up: Alloudi…The Toast of Morocco

الثلاثاء، 22 يناير 2008 - 16:37

Soufiane Alloudi, coach Henri Michel and the Moroccan national team were the toast of their country and the Arab region on Tuesday after their splendid start to the CAN 2008 campaign.

The Atlas Lions trounced Namibia in their opening Group A game, with Alloudi netting a hat-trick and Tarik Sektioui and Moncef Zerka on the score sheet.

Man of the day: Hat-trick hero Soufiane Alloudi was the cream of the crop for Morocco, scoring three goals in less than half an hour against a lackluster Namibia.

The talented striker, who plays for Al-Ain of UAE, was surprisingly included in the starting eleven by Henri Michel despite not featuring in the pre-tournament friendlies.

But it seems that the French manager made the right decision as the inexperienced forward overshadowed the likes of Marouane Chamakh and Youssef Hadji.

However, Alloudi was taken off the pitch in agony 30 minutes before the end after being on the receiving end of an ill-fated tackle by Namibia's Richard Gariseb. The Moroccans will be praying to have him fit soon.

Goal of the day: Salomon Kalou produced a wonderful solo effort to sink Nigeria, the Chelsea winger tormented the Super Eagles defense, taking on three defenders before steering home with power.