Libya swept aside Equatorial Guinea in their opening match in Tangier ©CAF

Libya swept aside Equatorial Guinea to get their pursuit of regaining their African Nations Championship title off to a winning start in Morocco.

The 2014 winners claimed a comfortable 3-0 victory in the Group C encounter at the Stade Ibn Batouta in Tangier.

Following a scrappy opening 10 minutes, Saleh Taher scrambled home the game's opener before he turned provider for Mohamed Aleyat to score a second five minutes later.

Zakaria Alharash put the gloss on a dominant performance for Libya as he netted a third three minutes from time.

The result saw Libya begin the tournament for home-based African players in style.

Libya were in fine form as they dominated their clash with Equatorial Guinea ©CAF
Libya were in fine form as they dominated their clash with Equatorial Guinea ©CAF

Equatorial Guinea, the hosts of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, will hope to bounce back when they face Rwanda on Friday (January 19).

Libya will take on Nigeria in their second match on the same day.

In the other match to take place today, Nigeria were held to a 0-0 draw by Rwanda.

The competition was initially due to be held in Kenya before the Confederation of African Football stripped the country of the event due to concerns over infrastructure.

Morocco will be hoping to use the tournament to showcase their hosting credentials as they are bidding for the 2026 World Cup along with a joint effort from the United States, Canada and Mexico.