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 2023 AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS 

SAN-PEDRO - They were picked by many as the pre-tournament favourites but now, Morocco are out of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast after suffering a 0-2 defeat against South Africa on Tuesday.

That means The Atlas Lions have exited the tournament at the round of 16 while Bafana Bafana progressed to the quarterfinals, where they will meet Cape Verde to battle for a semifinal spot.

Tuesday's shock result saw surprise 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco reduced to 10 men late on at the Stade Laurent Pokou in San-Pedro after Sofyan Amrabat was shown a straight red card in the fourth minute of the 10-minute-long stoppage time.

The game changed when South Africa took the lead in the 57th minute through Evidence Makgopa after a goalless but very physical opening half.

Achraf Hakimi had an opportunity to put the Moroccans but on level terms from the spot, but his penalty shot sent the ball crashing against the bar on its way over.

In a dramatic contest, Amrabat was then sent off for a foul on the edge of his team's box.

Initially, it was his second yellow card of the game, which amounts to a red card. But upon VAR intervention, Sudanese referee Mahmood Ali Mahmood Ismail changed that to a straight red card instead.

Teboho Mokoena then scored from the resulting freekick to seal South Africa's progression to the last-eight and at the same time send Morocco packing.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mali dumped Burkina Faso out of the competition in a 2-1 result.

Edmond Tapsoba's own goal got Mali off to a flying start, before Auxerre Sinayoko improved that lead not long after the restart.

Bertrand Traore struck from the spot to halve Burkina Faso's deficit, but eventually Mali held on to advance.

Quarterfinals cast complete

In the quarterfinals, South Africa will face off with Cape Verde in Yamoussoukro this Saturday.

That game will be played after Mali and hosts Ivory Coast's encounter earlier the same day in Bouake.

Before Saturday, the last-eight phase will get under way on Friday with Nigeria meeting Angola, before DR Congo facing off with Guinea later the same day.

For now, take a look at pictures from Tuesday's clash between South Africa and Morocco:
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 📸  PICTURES

This is how Walid Regragui's Morocco started...

...against this South African squad coached by Hugo Broos...

South Africa's forward Percy Tau controls the ball...

Here, Tau comes face to face with Morocco's midfielder Azzedine Ounahi...

It was a very physical contest featuring aerial challenges and commitments...

Here, Morocco's forward Amine Adli goes flying as he vies for the ball with South Africa's midfielder Teboho Mokoena.

Just before the hour mark, South Africa's forward Evidence Makgopa scored the opening goal to get the celebrations with teammates started...

The match had plenty of talking points, including a VAR checks and a penalty...

But eventually, it was Mokoena to score the winning goal to seal South Africa's progression to the quarterfinals at the expense of Morocco...

The result left Morocco's forward Amine Harit (L) and defender Achraf Hakimi, who missed a penalty, consoling themselves on the pitch...

Morocco's coach Walid Regragui consoled his players after exiting the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations...