Morocco vs Madagascar 2 June 2026 Prediction

Four years ago, Morocco reached the World Cup semifinals, becoming the first African team to go that far. The Atlas Lions are aiming to make another strong run at the upcoming tournament, but first they will play a friendly against Madagascar. Can Mohamed Ouahbi’s side claim a comfortable win?

Morocco Is Africa’s Best Team

Morocco heads to the World Cup as the Africa Cup of Nations champion. Everyone remembers the controversial final and Brahim Díaz’s missed penalty. Under Walid Regragui, the team had an excellent tournament, eliminating both Cameroon (2-0) and Nigeria (0-0, after penalties) on its way to the title, while conceding only one goal in seven matches.

Morocco will be led at the World Cup by a new manager. Walid Regragui resigned, and Mohamed Ouahbi was appointed as his successor. The only notable concern with the new manager is his lack of experience as a head coach at the highest level.

The Atlas Lions have a very strong squad. Their fullbacks stand out: Mazraoui improved under Carrick at Manchester United, while Achraf Hakimi became a two-time Champions League winner with PSG a few days ago, although he is not in the squad for this match. The midfield is also very strong: El Aynaoui (Roma), Ismael Saibari (PSV), and El Khannouss (Stuttgart) have been excellent for their clubs and already have European competition experience. And, of course, there is Real Madrid winger Brahim Díaz. He missed a penalty in the AFCON final, but was still named the tournament’s best player.

Madagascar: Hopes for a Better Future

Madagascar missed out on the World Cup, but its qualifying campaign was respectable. The visitors finished second, with two defeats to Ghana (0-1, 0-3) and a loss to Mali (1-4) blocking their path to the tournament. Still, given the modest level of the squad, that can be considered a solid performance.

Madagascar does not have clear star players. Midfielder Ryan Raveloson of Young Boys stands out, with eight goals in 46 appearances for the national team. There is also a young talent to watch. Ilan El Hadary of Valenciennes has already made 18 appearances for the national team at just 19 years old.

Morocco vs Madagascar Predicted Lineup

Morocco (4-3-3): Bounou — Mazraoui, Aguerd, Diop, Salah-Eddine — El Khannouss, El Aynaoui, Saibari — Díaz, El Kaabi, Ezzalzouli

Out: Hakimi (out of the squad)

Manager: Mohamed Ouahbi

Madagascar (4-3-3): Dupire — Akandi, Tremoulet, Randriamanampisoa, Jean-Pierre — Ponti, Raveloson, Couturier — Randrianantenaina, Caddy, Andrianantenaina

Out: —

Manager: Corentin Martins

Morocco vs Madagascar Prediction: Morocco to Win With a (-2.5) Handicap at 2.16

• Main Pick: Morocco is preparing for the World Cup, while for Madagascar this is more of a routine friendly, with the result carrying less importance. The gap in quality is too wide: almost Morocco’s entire starting core plays in Europe’s top five leagues, while the visitors do not have anyone with that kind of experience. It is also telling that Madagascar lost two of its three key qualifying matches by large margins against direct rivals. With Corentin Martins’ side lacking major motivation, the pick is clear. We are backing Morocco to win with a (-2.5) handicap at 2.16.
• Total Pick: Matches against Ghana and Mali showed that teams of this level are difficult opponents for Madagascar. Morocco is even stronger, and Ouahbi’s side needs to build form before the World Cup. We expect the goals in this match to come only from Morocco. We will take over 2.5 goals at 1.67.
• Correct Score Pick: Morocco conceded only once in seven matches at the most recent AFCON, showing a very high defensive level. We do not expect an unmotivated Madagascar side to score here. At the same time, Morocco has enough attacking quality to score three times. We will take a 3-0 correct score at 4.90.