NANTES, France — Soufiane Rahimi scored two goals and Morocco won the bronze medal with a 6-0 rout of Egypt on Thursday for the team’s first-ever podium finish at the Olympics.
Abde Ezzalzouli, Bilal El Khannouss, Akram Nakach and Achraf Hakimi also scored for Morocco, which went into halftime with a 2-0 lead to the delight of Moroccan fans at La Beaujoire Stadium.
Rahimi scored eight goals at the Paris Olympics, most in the tournament. At 28, he is one of the overage players allowed on the under-23 Olympic squads.
It was Egypt’s third fourth-place finish at the Olympics — after Amsterdam in 1928 and Tokyo in 1964.
Morocco has been inspired throughout the tournament by its senior men’s team, which was a surprise semifinalist at the World Cup in 2022.
The team also trounced the United States 4-0 at Parc des Princes in Paris in the quarterfinals but lost to Spain 2-1 in the semifinals.
Moroccan fans have been fervent in their support throughout the tournament. In the group stage, they rushed the field and threw bottles in a 2-1 win over Argentina, causing the game to be suspended for around two hours.
Rahimi’s first goal came off a header in the 26th minute that Egypt goalkeeper Alaa Hamza got a glove on but couldn’t stop.
Less than three minutes before Rahimi’s goal, Ezzalzouli scored from the top of the penalty box into the far corner. He joined his Moroccan teammates in a prayer on the corner of the field following the goal.
Morocco saw the return of midfielder El Khannouss, who was suspended for the semifinal. He made it 3-0 by shaking off a series of defenders for a goal in the 51st.
Rahimi’s second came in the 64th and he assisted on Nakach’s goal in the 73rd.
Hakimi, who plays in France for Paris Saint-Germain, scored on a late free kick.
Egypt was without Omar Fayed, who was sent off with a red card in the semifinal against France.
Egypt also lost winger Zizo, one of the teams overage players who had to leave in the 12th minute after pulling up with an injury.
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For more coverage of the Paris Olympics, visit https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games.
