AFCON
Winning start for holders Cote d’Ivoire in Cup of Nations qualifiers
Cote d’ivoire left it late but still made a winning start to the defence of their Africa Cup of Nations title by beating Zambia 2-0 at home on Friday in their opening qualifier for the 2025 final.
The Ivorians won the last edition on home soil in February and are heavily fancied to be one of the top two finishers in Group G and book a place at the next tournament.
But they had to turn to substitute striker Jean-Philippe Krasso to ensure success, as he came off the bench in Bouake to net twice in the final 16 minutes.
Friday’s round of qualifying matches also saw a win for Morocco, who will host the 2025 finals and are automatically in the 24-team field but still participating in the preliminary competition.
The Democratic Republic of Congo and Egypt were the other former continental champions who got their campaigns off to successful starts.
Four penalties were awarded in the first half of Morocco’s 4-1 win over Gabon in Agadir – two converted for the hosts by Hakim Ziyech but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had his first effort for Gabon saved before netting a second spot kick 24 minutes later for a 2-1 halftime deficit.
Aubameyang also struck the woodwork but a 59th minute goal from Real Madrid’s Brahim Diaz and a late effort, from a near impossible angle, from Ayoub El Kaabi ensured a comprehensive 4-1 victory for Morocco.
RACED AWAY
Sadio Mane’s 16th-minute goal handed Senegal the lead in their Group L clash with Burkina Faso. He raced away to score after teammate Nicolas Jackson had stripped the visitors of possession to set Mane away.
But they gave away a late equaliser deep in stoppage time for a 1-1 draw.
Egypt made light work in Cairo of the threat of the Cape Verde Islands, who were the surprise package of the last finals, with Rami Rabia and Omar Marmoush netting in the first half and Ibrahim Adel adding a 70th minute effort for a 3-0 success.
The Congolese edged Guinea 1-0 in Kinshasa with a first half goal from Watford striker Edo Kayembe.
In Johannesburg, South Africa kept up their 26-year unbeaten home record in Cup of Nations qualifiers but only after debutant Thalente Mbatha came off the bench to equalise five minutes into stoppage time of their Group K tie with Uganda.
A goalkeeping howler allowed Uganda to take a 2-1 lead in the second half before the dramatic rescue act.
Saturday will see three more qualifying games, in Cameroon, Mauritania and Nigeria, after which all of the 48 countries involved in the battle for places at the 2025 finals will have played their first group game.
-Reuters
The Libyan Football Federation (LFF) has sacked its Serbian coach, Milutin Sredojević who is popularly known as Micho.
This is coming ahead of Libya’s back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations clashes with Nigeria next month.
Paradoxically, Sports Village Square gathered that the coach’s contract was only recently renewed for six months before the axe fell on the Serbian.
His sack was precipitated by the results obtained in their teo matches of the AFCON qualifiers.
Libya drew 1-1 with Rwanda at home and lost 2-1 away to Benin Republic despite beig a goal up at half time.
The Libyan side, Mediterranean Knights are due to play against the Nigeria Super Eagles in Uyo on 6 October while the return leg holds on 14 October at the 11 July Stadium in Tripoli.
According to information Sports Village Square gathered from Tripoli, the Mediterranean Knights’ coach, Micho led the Libyan national team to win nine matches since taking over in October of last year, he failed to build a strong team due to his poor choices.
He also took a risk with the footballers chosen in the AFCON qualifiers, and the result was shocking to the Libyan sports audience.
According to sources close to the Libyan Football Federation, there is a strong tendency to sign a national coach to lead the Libyan team during the remaining qualifiers for the African Cup of Nations.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe has lashed out at Ghana and some other African countries whose home grounds were recently banned from hosting CAF matches owing to inadequate facilities. He made the remarks in Nairobi, Kenya during a press conference,
After the MatchDay 2 of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, CAF ruled Ghana’s Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi as being inadequate to host international matches. Being the only approved ground in the country, Ghana will now look towards either Cote d’Ivoire or Togo for their remaining home matches of the Afcon qualifiers.
Other African countries without approved home grounds are: Djibouti, Chad, Niger, Eritrea, Gabon, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, São Tomé and Burundi.
Motsepe voiced his frustration over the recurring issue of nations being unable to host home games.
“Nothing frustrates me more than a national team or club side having to play home matches outside,” he stated.
He stressed the significance of playing in front of home fans, adding, “You can’t grow football if the national teams or club sides aren’t playing in front of their home fans.”
Motsepe reiterated CAF’s commitment to working with countries to ensure they have at least one suitable stadium to host international fixtures.
“Our conversations in every country are to make sure there is at least one stadium capable of hosting a CAF category C game,” he emphasized.
The on-going CAF AFCON Cote d’Ivoire 2023 Coaches Symposium in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire has brought together, the last three coaches that handled the Nigeria national football team.
Gernot Rohr, Jose Peseiro and Austin Eguavoen are part of the the elite coaches currently gathered in Abidjan.
Gernot Rohr whose tenure of 5 years and 55 matches is the longest ever by any coach in Nigeria, is currently handling Nigeria’s Africa Cupof Nations and World Cup qualifying rivals, Benin Republic. He was succeeded in the interim by Austin Eguavoen who is currently having another interim stint.
Peseiro left his position after the Africa Cup of Nations
Italian World Cup striker Schillaci dies aged 59
Undisputed World Boxing Champion, Oleksandr Usyk detained and released in Poland
Kane scores four goals as record-breaking Bayern crush Dinamo Zagreb 9-2
Breaking! Uzoho suspended from Super Eagles’ next match with Sierra Leone
No longer Super League as CAF changes name of its new clubs competition
AIU releases its report on Tobi Amusan
-
AFCON1 week agoSuper Eagles lead Afcon Group D qualifiers despite Benin’s defeat of Libya
-
AFCON1 week agoAustin Eguavoen remains the ‘Big Boss’, says NFF
-
AFCON1 week agoWhy I benched Osimhen again – Eguavoen
-
AFCON7 days agoRwanda newspaper gives 5 lessons gleaned from Rwanda-Nigeria clash
-
Nigerian Football1 week agoWesterhof recommends Siasia for Super Eagles’ job
-
AFCON1 week agoNigeria’s managerial crisis resumes as Eguavoen reportedly declines to continue
-
AFCON6 days agoPresent and Past as CAF Coaches Symposium unites Rohr, Peseiro and Eguavoen
-
CAF Confederation Cup5 days agoEnyimba continues unbeaten run against Burkina Faso clubs