adminoff an Abdelaziz Barrada cross on 78 minutes to cancel out the lead Platini gave the tiny island state 35 minutes into the match with a chip over goalkeeper Nadir Lamyaghri.
After coming off second-best for long spells, Morocco ended the game strongly and a flashing El Arabi header from a corner almost snatched victory for the Atlas Lions.
Hosts South Africa defeated Angola 2-0 in the first half of a double-header that lifted them to the top of the table with four points. Cape Verde and Morocco have two points each and Angola one with one round left.
“We made another draw, but we are still alive. I am very happy with this result — a great one for our country. My players worked very well and proved they have qualities,” said Cape Verde coach Luis Antunes.
Morocco coach Rachid Taoussi said: “We did not underestimate our opponents, but we took time to adapt to their style and made individual mistakes in the first half. The second half was better and I have hope for the next game.”
The coaches made two changes each to the teams that had the better of listless goalless draws againt South Africa and Angola respectively in the first series of games four days ago.
Gege and Julio Tavares came into the Blue Sharks starting line-up at the expense of Carlitos and Heldon while the Lions preferred Zakarya Bergdich and Younes Belhanda to Abdelhamid El Kaoutari and Adil Hermach.
Although four places above Morocco in the FIFA world rankings, Cape Verde started the match as underdogs, but the tag clearly was not worrying them as they had the better of the first half exchanges to lead 1-0 at half-time.
Morocco took an age to organise a defensive wall midway through the half with captain Lamyaghri almost hoarse after screaming so many instructions to his team-mates.
His appeals fell on deaf ears as Ryan Mendes stepped up to drill a free-kick past the wall only for the veteran shot-stopper to push the ball away two-handed before it was cleared.
However, Lamyaghri was helpless to prevent the islanders taking a shock lead on 35 minutes as Karim El Ahmadi gave away possession in midfield, Mendes burst forward and Platini chipped a perfectly-timed pass into the net. Taoussi rang the second-half changes, bringing on El Arabi, Chahir Belghazouani and Kamel Chafni within 20 minutes, while playmaker Belhanda was among those benched.
Belhanda, a French Ligue 1 championship winner with Montpellier last season, was yellow-carded for going into a tackle with his studs showing, and his second caution of the tournament meant an automatic one-match suspension. Cape Verde replaced Platini and Mendes with Roni and Heldon and the slowness with which the substitutions were made indicated that the Sharks were shutting up shop in an attempt to hang on. — AFP.
Online Reporter