Tunisia left it late but secured a crucial 2-0 win over a stubborn Malawi side to tighten their grip at the top of Group H in the 2026 FIFA World Cup African qualifiers, while Ethiopia undoubtedly revived their campaign with a stunning 6-1 rout of Djibouti in Group A.

Seifeddine Jaziri came off the bench to break Malawi’s resistance with a headed goal in the 86th minute before Elias Achouri sealed the victory with a stoppage-time penalty.

The Carthage Eagles were frustrated for much of the match by a well-drilled Malawi defence and needed late interventions to secure all three points.

Jaziri, introduced in the 78th minute by Tunisia head coach Sami Trabelsi, took just eight minutes to justify his selection, connecting with a cross to beat goalkeeper William Thole, who had been outstanding throughout the contest.

Achouri’s penalty in the 92nd minute put the result beyond doubt after Malawi, desperate to rescue a point, conceded a foul in the box.

There was still late drama as Malawi were awarded a penalty deep into added time, but Aymen Dahmen guessed correctly to deny Richard Mbulu from the spot.

The result sees Tunisia move to 13 points from five matches, four ahead of second-placed Namibia who were held to a 1-1 draw by Equatorial Guinea earlier in the day.

Ethiopia explode into life in Group A

In Group A, Ethiopia served up one of the most dominant performances of the qualifiers so far, thrashing Djibouti 6-1 to register their first win of the campaign in spectacular style.

Hat-tricks from Bereka Desta and Abubeker Nassir lit up the Stade Ben M’Hamed El Abdi in El Jadida, Morocco, as the Walya Antelopes turned on the style against a hapless Djibouti defence.

Desta opened the scoring in the 19th minute and added further strikes in the 52nd and 70th minutes.

Nassir wasn’t to be outdone, netting in the 34th, 37th, and 58th minutes to complete a devastating display of attacking football.

Djibouti, now with just a single point from six games, had a brief moment of hope when Samuel Akinbinu pulled a goal back in the 51st minute.

But that proved to be a mere consolation as Ethiopia ran riot to climb to fourth place in the group standings, although they remain seven points behind leaders Egypt, who have a game in hand.

It was a statement win from Mesay Teferi’s side, who had struggled in earlier fixtures but will now hope to carry momentum into the final stretch of qualifying.

With two matchdays remaining, both Tunisia and Ethiopia have given their fans renewed hope – the former eyeing a return to the World Cup, and the latter showing they may yet have a say in Group A’s final outcome.

-CAF

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Eritrean referee, Teklu Mogos Tsegay will be at the centre when the Nigeria Super Eagles host Zimbabwe Warriors in Uyo on Tuesday. The match will be the third in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers that Tsegay will be officiating.

He was the centre referee in Lesotho’s goalless draw with Benin Republic and Mozambique’s 2-1 defeat of Somalia.

Years back, he officiated Enugu Rangers’ 2-1 defeat of Lesotho’s Bantu FC in the 2019/20 Confederation Cup duel which the Nigerian side won 2-1.

In the qualification series for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, he officiated in two matches – Chad’s 2-0 home loss to Cote d’Ivoire and the 1-1 draw of Comoros Islands versus Tunisia.

One certainty is that he is a no-nonsense referee as his yellow cards are always handy. In the two 2025 Afcon qualifying matches, he issued eight yellow cards.

When he officiated the Mozambique versus Somalia World Cup qualifying match, the Mozambicans got two yellow cards while Somalia had two double cautions that turned to expulsion while two other players got yellow cards.

In the Lesotho versus Benin World Cup qualifying match, a player on each side got a yellow card.

This call for caution on the players as Referee Tsegay asserts his authority. He will be assisted by compatriots, Eyobel Michael and Mengis Sirak Samuel. Ghanaian Prosper Harrison Addo will be the commissioner while Paulin Ilboudo from Burkina Faso will serve as referee assessor.

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The Super Eagles expect to rise to nine points and be fully back into contention for a 2026 FIFA World Cup ticket after Tuesday’s African Qualification Series Matchday 6 encounter against the Warriors of Zimbabwe at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo.  

Team captain William Ekong reiterated on Monday afternoon that the three-time African champions will seek to control the game the way they did the encounter with Rwanda in Kigali on Friday, and then work hard to get the goals that will give them the three points and fully establish them as one of the contenders for the ticket.

“We are looking forward to a win. The three points are important to us. At this stage, we cannot afford to drop any more points. Our aim is to take it one match at a time, collect three points here and there and hope fervently that these will be enough to get us the ticket.”

Without a win in their first four games of the series, Nigeria languished in fifth place in the six-team group C and remained in a perilous situation, until Friday’s robust win over Rwanda in Kigali threw them up as a proposition for the ticket to the finals.

Nigeria, with six points, moved up to fourth position, while Zimbabwe, on three, prop up the table, and will seek to increase their haul in Tuesday’s encounter.

The Warriors’ 45-man contingent, led by the ZIFA Vice President, Kennedy Ndebele, landed at the Victor Attah International Airport, Uyo on Friday afternoon, 85 minutes after the arrival of the Super Eagles’ contingent from Kigali.

While the Warriors trained at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium on Sunday morning, the Super Eagles trained at the same venue in the evening.

Leaders South Africa, on 10 points, square up to second-placed Benin Republic, on eight points, at the Stade Félix Houphouet-Boigny in Abidjan in a match starting simultaneously with that of Uyo. 

Lesotho, now in fifth place following their defeat by South Africa on Friday, will tackle Rwanda’s Amavubi at Kigali’s Amahoro Stadium in the last match of group C.

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