On Tuesday, Morocco booked their place in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) quarter-finals as Achraf Hakimi’s stunning free-kick sealed a 2-1 win over Malawi in Yaounde.

The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) full-back struck 20 minutes from time at Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo after Youssef En-Nesyri cancelled out Gabadinho Mhango’s magnificent early effort.

After scraping through Group B in third-place, Malawi were making their first appearance in the AFCON knockout stages.

In the seventh minute, the Flames took a surprise lead, Mhango catching Yassine Bounou off his line with a wonderful 40-yard lob.

Morocco had only lost one of their previous 11 games when facing an opponent in the competition for the first time.

Vahid Halilhodzic’s side equalised in first-half stoppage time as En-Nesyri headed home from Selim Amallah’s deep cross.

The contest looked possibly set for extra-time until Hakimi emphatically beat Charles Thomu from 30 yards to send his nation through to the last eight.

In the quarter-finals, Morocco will face either Côte d’Ivoire or Egypt.

(dpa/NAN)