Nigeria and Ghana suffer huge AFCON 2027 qualifying shocks

The Gambia travel backmost to bushed ‌Ghana 4-2, portion Guinea Bissau bushed Nigeria 3-0 contempt 7 Premier League starters.

West ⁠African giants Ghana and Nigeria some suffered chastening defeats successful Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers precocious Tuesday, portion Algeria fought backmost from 2 goals down to debar a daze nonaccomplishment to Burundi.

Tiny Cape Verde, who won legions of admirers with their gutsy exploits astatine this year’s World Cup, besides went down successful a astonishment location nonaccomplishment to Rwanda.

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But heavyweight contenders Egypt, Morocco and Senegal each won hard distant assignments, and determination were location wins for Benin, Comoros, Gabon, the Ivory Coast, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zambia connected a engaged time of 17 matches successful the preliminaries for the 2027 finals to beryllium cohosted by Kenya, Tanzania and ⁠Uganda.

Ghana, 1 of Africa’s 10 representatives astatine the World Cup wherever they reached the past 32, surrendered a 2-0 pb successful a stunning 4-2 location decision by The Gambia successful Accra.

The Gambia, whose colonisation is little than 3 cardinal compared with Ghana’s astir 35 million, deed backmost done a Muhammed Badamosi punishment and goals from Omar Colley and substitute Ebrima Colley, who struck twice.

Ernest Nuamah and Felix Afena-Gyan had enactment the Black Stars 2 goals up aft 33 minutes, but their illness prompted aggravated location supporters to propulsion bottles onto the transportation successful the closing stages.

The effect ‌increased the unit connected seasoned manager Carlos Queiroz aft they opened their Group C run with a nonaccomplishment distant to Ivory Coast past week.

Coventry City’s Yann Gboho made a melodramatic debut for Ivory Coast, coming disconnected the seat to interruption Somalia’s stubborn absorption successful the last infinitesimal earlier Bazoumana Toure added a 2nd 5 minutes into stoppage clip to implicit a 2-0 win.

Nigeria, who were semifinalists astatine the past Cup of Nations finals successful January, had 7 Premier League players successful their starting lineup but were comprehensively outplayed arsenic they went down 3-0 successful Guinea Bissau, wherever the borderline of decision mightiness person been adjacent bigger.

Franculino Dju curled location the first-half opener and skipper Mama Balde made it 2-0 successful the 66th minute. Alvaro Djalo added a 3rd successful stoppage time.

Algeria combat backmost successful their AFCON qualifier

Algeria recovered themselves 2-0 down distant successful Burundi aft 12 ⁠minutes but fought backmost to stock the spoils successful their Group I necktie successful Bujumbura.

But it was a acold from convincing show ⁠under caller manager Brahim Hemdani arsenic Mohamed Belloumi and Adil Boulbina spared Algerian blushes.

Cape Verde person present mislaid their opening 2 Group K clashes aft Rwanda came from 1 extremity down to triumph 2-1 successful Praia with teen Elie Iradukunda netting the decisive goal. In the aforesaid group, Mali won 1-0 distant successful Liberia.

Egypt, who near Mohamed Salah astatine location implicit fears of imaginable wounded connected the artificial aboveground astatine Juba ⁠in South Sudan, ran retired 5-0 winners with Omar Marmoush grabbing a treble and Mostafa Zico, Ibrahim Adel, and teen Hamza Abdelkarim besides connected people successful the Group B clash.

Brahim Diaz took vantage of sloppy defending to springiness Morocco the pb connected the changeable of ⁠halftime distant against Lesotho. The lucifer was played successful Bloemfontein, South Africa, due to the fact that Lesotho does not person a stadium ⁠up to planetary standards.

Azzedine Ounahi added a 2nd 8 minutes from clip to implicit the 2-0 triumph that enactment Morocco apical of Group A.

Vieira secures archetypal triumph arsenic Senegal coach

Senegal had to support tenaciously distant against Ethiopia to springiness caller manager Patrick Vieira his archetypal triumph successful complaint aft past week’s gully successful Mozambique. Ibrahim Mbaye scored the game’s lone extremity aft 11 minutes, having been teed up by a walk from his Aston Villa ‌teammate Nicolas Jackson.

Mozambique went apical of Group J connected extremity quality aft demolishing Sudan 4-1 successful Maputo with a treble from striker Chamito, who plays his nine shot successful Portugal’s 3rd tier.

Cameroon fought backmost for a 1-1 gully against Congo successful Brazzaville portion successful the different Group G match, Comoros had a 1-0 location triumph successful Moroni implicit Namibia, wherever ‌Benjaloud ‌Youssef scored aboriginal successful the 2nd half.

The 2012 African champions Zambia bushed Togo 2-0 successful Ndola successful a lucifer halted for 20 minutes by a first-half powerfulness failure. Rodolfo Aloko scored some goals for Benin successful their 2-1 triumph implicit Mauritania and debutant Arnold Vula netted Uganda’s extremity successful a 1-0 location triumph implicit Libya.