Story byAyoub El Kaabi has emerged as Morocco's star man so far at the Africa Cup of Nations (Gabriel BOUYS)Mostafa EL MENJAOUIFri, January 2, 2026 at 3:36 AM UTC·4 min readWith captain Achraf Hakimi hardly featuring during the Africa Cup of Nations group stage as he recovers from injury, Ayoub El Kaabi has emerged as the hero of the tournament so far for the host country. While Hakimi, the African footballer of the year, has made just one substitute appearance up to now, El Kaabi came off the bench to seal Morocco's 2-0 win over Comoros in the opening game with a stunning overhead kick. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThat moment of magic earned the 32-year-old a place in the starting line-up for the next match, a 1-1 draw with Mali. While El Kaabi failed to repeat his goalscoring heroics on what was a more frustrating occasion for a much-hyped Moroccan team, he was back at it in Monday's 3-0 victory against Zambia which allowed the Atlas Lions to wrap up first place in Group A and a last-16 tie against Tanzania. The Olympiacos hitman headed in the opening goal and later wrapped up the win with another overhead kick. Cue adulation in the kingdom for a player who first broke into the national team ahead of the 2018 World Cup but has never really been an established starter. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement- Viral videos -Videos posted online of fans repeating El Kaabi's bicycle kick move in unlikely situations have become viral, registering millions of views. Meanwhile, a light show in the sky over Casablanca used drones to recreate El Kaabi scoring in acrobatic fashion. Another widely viewed online video is a compilation of all the goals scored by El Kaabi in that way, because the overhead kick has long been his speciality. He scored four such goals during a breakthrough 2020/21 season with Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca and had already pulled off the feat a couple of times for his country before the AFCON, including in stunning fashion against Benin last June. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"The most important thing is to score. It doesn't really matter who scores or how they do it," El Kaabi humbly said after the Zambia game.- From carpenter to goalscorer -El Kaabi's story begins in the streets of Casablanca, where he started playing football in an impoverished neighbourhood and worked as a carpenter."I grew up in a shanty town in Derb Mila, a neighbourhood that everybody knows," the striker said in an interview with UEFA. com in 2024."We were in a bit of a difficult financial situation. I was able to go to school and study, and in the summer I worked in order to help my family. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I helped my Dad who worked in construction.
