South African football great Theophilus “Doctor” Khumalo believes hosts Morocco have a genuine chance of lifting the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, but says the title will only come if they continue to match performance with purpose.

The Atlas Lions booked their place in the semi-finals on Friday with a composed 2-0 victory over Cameroon, a result that underlined their growing authority in the tournament and strengthened belief among home supporters.

Khumalo, who was part of South Africa’s historic AFCON-winning side in 1996, says the standard of this year’s competition is noticeably higher than the previous edition held in Ivory Coast.

“You know, I must say it’s a totally different AFCON from the one that was in Ivory Coast,” Khumalo said on the African Five-a-Side podcast. “Big teams, big countries have stepped up their game, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Benin, Cameroon, Egypt, even Morocco.”

The former Bafana Bafana midfielder pointed to Morocco’s recent history as a reminder that home advantage alone guarantees nothing. The Atlas Lions were eliminated by South Africa at the last AFCON in 2023, a result that still lingers in the memory.

“Being the home country doesn’t qualify the fact that you will be champions,” Khumalo added. “The game is the teacher. You saw what happened against Tanzania, they scored at a critical phase. That tells you the game has evolved.”

Khumalo believes smaller nations are now closing the gap on Africa’s traditional heavyweights, making consistency and quality more important than reputation.

“Small countries are starting to challenge the big guns,” he said. “But answering your question, I think Morocco can win it, only if they continue to play good football.”

Morocco now face a major test of those ambitions when they meet Nigeria in a high-stakes semi-final, a clash that will go a long way towards determining whether Khumalo’s belief in the hosts proves well placed.