Kenya U20 men’s national team assistant coach Anthony Akhulia has blamed poor defending for the Rising Stars’ 3-2 loss to Morocco in their opening match in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo in Egypt.

Apart from poor defending on Thursday, May 1, 2025, Akhulia said there were chances for Rising Stars, but they did not capitalise on them.

“We played well; it’s unfortunate that we lost the match. We created numerous scoring chances that we didn’t really take.

“We didn’t defend well. We gave in. Looking at the way we conceded two goals, the defense was caught napping, and we really didn’t react quickly to situations. I can call them cheap goals,” Akhulia said as quoted by a local publication.

Although there were questionable officiating decisions, the Bidco United head coach did not point an accusing finger at the referees but chose to take responsibility instead.

“I won’t really comment on it, but I think the referee did her work. On our side, we were supposed to take our chances and win the match. We were supposed to win the match. That’s my take,” he said.

How Morocco won

Rising Stars stunned Morocco when they took the lead in the 16th minute when Lawrence Ouma scored from a free kick delivered by Kevin Injehu.

Morocco fought back and equalised when Yassir Zabiri scored. The Moroccan managed a well-driven finish, but his goal was subjected to a VAR check before it was ruled to be a deserved goal.

Zabiri put Morocco ahead in the 55th minute, but Kenya maintained their attacking tempo and equalised in the 71st minute through AFC Leopards’ forward Hassan Beja.

However, Kenya’s fighting spirit was dented in the 78th minute when Reda Laalaoui scored the winning goal for the North Africans.

As Morocco started their campaign with a win, Kenya’s return to the tournament ended on a disappointing note. Kenya last featured in U20 AFCON in 1979.