Football: Morocco trounces Tunisia, tops Olympic group
Morocco-Regional, Sports, 2/21/2000

Morocco's Olympic squad trounced Tunisian peer 4-2 in a match played in Tunis Sunday, part of the preliminary heats for the Olympic games, due next summer in Australia.

The Moroccans showed a strong determination to make their fans forget the poor performance of their elders in the African Cup of Nations, held recently in Nigeria and Ghana.

Adopting a 3-5-2 lineup, the Moroccan coach, Said Al-Kheidar, wanted to squeeze the Tunisians and push them to err, an objective widely accomplished due to his group's efficiency.

The Moroccan side managed to score the opener as early as the 13th minute, when Karim Ben Kouar, who plays with the French club of Nice, sneaked into the Tunisian defense to push the ball home.

Shortly before the end of the first half, Bouchayed Lambarki, striker of the Casablanca club Raja, scored twice to seal the Moroccans' victory.

The Tunisians loosened their defense in the second half, allowing Zerouali to score a fourth goal for Morocco.

However, the Moroccan defense lack of experience allowed two Tunisian goals in the last 15 minutes.

While Morocco was beating Tunisia at home, Cote D'Ivoire narrowly escaped defeat in Abijan against Egypt. The Egyptians, who were leading 2-0, took back home a precious 3-3 draw.

Morocco's victory put it on top of the group with 6 points, followed by Cote d'Ivoire (5 points) and Egypt (4 points). Tunisia, which ranks last with 1 points, has lost all hope to make it to the Olympic games.

Morocco will play Tunisia again next Sunday in Morocco, while Egypt will receive Cote d'Ivoire.

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