With a stunning goal: Egypt beat Morocco to put one foot in the under-17 Africa Cup of Nations

Egypt's under-17 side moved a step closer to booking their place in the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations for youth players, after securing their second successive win in the North African qualifiers, beating their Moroccan counterparts 1-0 in the match that brought the two together at the Olympic Stadium in the Tunisian city of Sousse, as part of the second round of fixtures.

Youssef Ali settled it in the 11th minute. The Egypt winger lashed home from outside the box to hand the Pharaohs an early lead, just a minute after Mohamed Mostafa "Costa" had squandered a penalty awarded by Algerian referee Mohamed Rafik Aouina for a foul on Omar Chaboun.

That win tightened Egypt's grip at the summit of the qualifying table. Six points from six, a flawless start to life under head coach Abdel Sattar Sabry.

Sabry's side opened their campaign by beating Tunisia, then backed it up against Morocco to leave themselves on the brink of the continental finals.

Seeing off Morocco handed Egypt a crucial edge in the race, a result that accounted for one of their direct rivals for the two promotion tickets. One qualifier remains, and it could decide everything.

Elsewhere in the second round, Tunisia swept Algeria aside, with both sides still scrapping for one of the two qualification spots.

Algeria had kicked off their campaign by beating Morocco, keeping the maths alive even as Egypt sit top on 6 points.

Egypt now ready themselves to face Algeria next Monday in the final round, chasing a positive result to cap their campaign and cement their qualification hopes. The game carries extra weight for Algeria, who need to bounce back from defeat to Tunisia and keep their own promotion dream breathing.

Four teams contest the North Africa qualifiers: Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, after Libya pulled out. The top two book their place at the Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

Egypt will look to ride their fast start and seal qualification in that final round.