Egypt remained unbeaten in CAF qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 26™ following a well-earned victory over Burkina Faso, while Ghana rallied in the second half to post a crucial win at Mali and Guinea raised eyebrows with a massive victory at Algeria.
Group A
Guinea-Bissau 0-0 Ethiopia
Egypt 2-1 Burkina Faso
The Luis Boa Morte era at Guinea-Bissau opened with a goalless draw against Ethiopia, with both sides failing to convert chances in a well-matched bout. The result ensured the Portuguese’s charges remain undefeated in qualifying and move up to second, while Ethiopia remain fifth.
Egypt continued to roll in qualifying with a victory against Burkina Faso. The star of the day for the home side was Trezeguet, who bagged a first-half brace.
The visitors enjoyed a strong second 45 minutes and pulled a goal back through Lassina Traore, but the Pharaohs held on.
Egypt remain top and extended their unbeaten run versus Burkina Faso to eight matches, with five wins and three draws.
Group B
Mauritania 0-2 Sudan
Senegal 1-1 Congo DR
Sudan made it back-to-back qualification wins by brushing aside rock-bottom Mauritania in Nouakchott. Saifeldin Bakhit gave the away side the lead when he pounced on a long ball forward to nod home in the 15th-minute, before Aly Abeid put through his own net to double the deficit just before the half-hour. Mauritania remain bottom of the group, while Sudan have rocketed their way into first position.
Senegal and DR Congo shared the spoils in a hard-fought affair in Senegal. Pape Matar Sarr provided the scoring for the hosts shortly before interval, but DR Congo got a late equaliser through Fiston Mayele to earn a precious point. It was the first goal conceded by Senegal in four World Cup qualifiers.
Group C
Benin 1-0 Rwanda
Benin sparked their qualifying hopes by earning a narrow victory against Rwanda.
It was Benin’s first win in qualifying and came courtesy of Douko Dodo in the first half. For Rwanda, the result snapped an unbeaten run of five matches.
Group D
Libya 2-1 Mauritius
Ten-man Libya continued their unbeaten start to qualifying following a 2-1 win over Mauritius.
Faisal Al Badri opened the scoring after 20 minutes, only for Kevin Bru to equalise for the visitors less than 15 minutes later after whipping home a wicked free-kick.
Ahmed Ekrawa restored the lead just before the break, and while Ali Youssef was sent off for the home side late on, it proved to be the winner. The result moves the Mediterranean Knights into top spot, while Mauritius remain second-bottom.
Group E
Congo v Niger was postponed.
Group G
Algeria 1-2 Guinea
Guinea earned a massive three points in their visit to Algeria, bringing themselves level on points with the Desert Foxes.
Morlaye Sylla had Guinea in dreamland early in the second half, but the Desert Foxes equalised through Yasser Balde’s own-goal. However, Guinea once again went ahead and found a winner through Aguibou Camara.
Group H
Malawi 3-1 São Tomé and Príncipe
Malawi kept up the pressure on the frontrunners with victory over São Tomé and Príncipe in Lilongwe. The home side were two goals to the good within the opening quarter-of-an-hour, with Chawanangwa Kawonga and Lanjesi Nkhoma on target.
Denison Cassandra Da Silva halved the deficit midway through the second half, but Chifundo Mphasi’s strike 12 minutes from time put the result beyond doubt. Malawi sit third in the group, one point behind second-placed Namibia and three off Tunisia.
Group I
Ghana stormed back from behind to claim a crucial away win at Mali, catapulting the Black Stars to second in the group.
Kamory Doumbia did damage for the hosts when he found the back of the net in the waning moments of the first half, but Ghana’s Ernest Nuamah pulled the visitors level before Jordan Ayew scored the winner in the dying moments.
Credit: FIFA
