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Johannesburg (AFP)
Mali and Tunisia qualified for the final of the 2021 African Cup of Nations on Tuesday to follow in the footsteps of champions Algeria, Senegal and host Cameroon.
A further 19 spots will be up for grabs over the last two rounds from March 22-30, with seven-time champion Egypt among those close to securing spots.
Sekou Koita and Moussa Doumbia scored in Mali’s 2-1 win over Namibia in Windhoek, which posted their eighth consecutive appearance in the African soccer showcase.
Tunisia will reach the final for the 15th time in a row, extending the record, after drawing 1-1 with Tanzania in Dar es Salaam, where Saifeddine Khaoui gave them an early lead.
Neither Group A leader Mali nor Group J leader Tunisia are confident of winning their four-nation groups, but both are certain of finishing in the top two and qualifying.
Senegal secured a spot on Sunday, Algeria did the same on Monday and Cameroon automatically filled in the spot reserved for the host nation.
Aston Villa forward Mahmoud Trezeguet scored the final goal in Egypt’s 3-0 win over Togo in Lomé in Group G, with Mohamed ‘Afsha’ Magdy and Mohamed Sherif also on the scoreboard.
Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech scored the first goal and created the second when Group E leaders Morocco beat the Central African Republic 2-0 in Douala.
After Sierra Leone’s spectacular four-goal comeback to force a 4-4 draw in Group L in Nigeria last week, the reverse encounter provided little drama and ended 0-0 in Freetown.
An injury-time goal from Mohamed Abdelrahman gave Sudan a surprise 1-0 victory over Group C leaders Ghana, which was captained for the first time by fourth seed Jordan Ayew, the Crystal Palace striker.
Injuries ruled out midfielders Andre Ayew and Thomas Partey, the first- and second-choice captains, and the next in line, goalkeeper Richard Ofori, was suspended.
© 2020 AFP
