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Mali secured their place in an eighth consecutive Nations Cup final with a close and close 2-1 victory over host Namibia.
All three goals in Tuesday’s Group A game came in the first 40 minutes of the game, when Mali had a penalty saved in the second half and Namibia hit the post.
Red Bull Salzburg’s Sekou Koita scored after just 12 minutes for Mali as he drove to the edge of the area before firing a powerful shot that passed goalkeeper Virgil Vries in the top corner.
Vries missed on the second goal as Moussa Doumbia entered the area and fired from a tight angle that passed the keeper at his near post.
Two minutes later, Namibia withdrew a goal when Elmo Kambindu rose at the far post to head off a free kick from Absalom Limbondi.
Both teams struggled to score again after the break and Mali should have added a third from the penalty spot, but Vries took the right path and saved El Bilal Touré’s effort. The penalty had been awarded for an awkward challenge in Doumbia by substitute Riaan Hanamub.
The Namibian came close to making peace at the end with a ferocious shot that had beaten the Mali goalkeeper but not the post.
Mali’s victory brings them to 10 points, two ahead of second-place Guinea, with Namibia at three and still with a mathematical chance of taking second place.
However, Chad, despite scoring his first point of the campaign in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Guinea, is now unable to qualify for the final.
Tanzania 1-1 Tunisia (Group J)
Tunisia earned their place in the final phase of the Nations Cup despite being contested in Dar es Salaam by hosts Tanzania.
The Carthage Eagles dominated the opening exchanges and hit the wood on either side of their goal.
Tunisia took the lead in the 11th minute thanks to Marseille’s Seifeddine Khaoui with a truly excellent shot after he was outmatched by a beautiful skill from Youssef Msakni.
With Tanzania fighting in front of their fans at the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium, it looked like Tunisia would win easily.
Things changed just two minutes after the break when substitute Feisal Salum found the goal with a shocking blow from outside the area.
Tanzania improved in the second half and both teams had their chances but remained stagnant at 1-1.
The draw was enough for Tunisia to confirm their place in Cameroon as they are now guaranteed a top two result, thanks to their 1-0 win over Tanzania last Friday, guaranteeing the Carthage Eagles a better record. head to head over the Taifa. Stars
Tanzania is in third place with four points, two behind Equatorial Guinea in second place, with Libya still with a chance despite being at the end with three points.
Sudan 1-0 Ghana (Group C)
Sudan scored a last gasp win to overtake visiting Ghana in Group C of the African Cup of Nations qualifiers on Tuesday.
The result means that Ghana will have to wait to qualify for the final having started the day knowing that a draw would see them progress.
The match at the Al Hilal Stadium in Omdurman was a physical affair in which both teams received two yellow cards each in a goalless first half.
Ghana were playing without their injured captain Andre Ayew, who scored the Black Stars’ goals in a 2-0 win over the same opponents on Thursday, as well as suspended starting goalkeeper Richard Ofori.
His replacements played their part with Caleb Ekuban causing trouble for the Sudanese defense and Fatua Dauda making some crucial saves at the other end.
With time running out, the Black Stars looked happy to play for the tie, but Sudan never gave up and scored in the second minute of added time.
Ramadan Agab ran over a cross from the right that Mohamed Abdelrahman received and his firm header gave Dauda no chance.
That result means Ghana remains at the nine-point level with South Africa as Sudan advances to six points and all three are still seeking a place in the final.
The other team in the group is São Tomé, who have yet to win a single point after their 4-2 loss to South Africa on Monday.
Central African Republic 0-2 Morocco (Group E)
Morocco remained undefeated in Group E with a 2-0 win over Central African Republic, in a match played in the Cameroonian city of Douala because there is no proper stadium in Bangui.
Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech scored six minutes before the break while floating on a free kick from the right side, Nayef Aguerd got up as if to head the ball but eluded everyone to finish at the back of the net.
Ziyech then became the provider for the second goal scored in injury time, when he squared the ball for Youssef En Neysri to slip into an empty net after a ruthlessly fast counterattack from the Atlas Lions.
The result means Morocco are top of the group with 10 points and only need a draw in their last two games to qualify for the finals.
The other place is wide open with Mauritania with five points after Sunday’s 3-1 loss in Burundi, which has four points and CAR is left with three.
Sierra Leone 0-0 Nigeria; Lesotho 0-0 Benin (Group L)
Tuesday’s two matches in Group L failed to produce a single goal, as Nigeria was once again in the hands of Sierra Leone.
The Leone Stars had pulled off a remarkable comeback on Friday by coming back four goals against and drawing a 4-4 draw.
Despite that result, the Super Eagles could have secured a spot in the final with a win at Freetown.
The results mean that Nigeria continues to lead the group with eight points, just one ahead of Benin.
Sierra Leone is third with three points and Lesotho is down with two, but both teams still have a chance of reaching the final in Cameroon.
Togo 1-3 Egypt (Group G)
Egypt got ahead of Comoros on goal difference thanks to a 3-1 win in Togo, which is no longer in dispute.
The Pharaohs’ first goal came against the streak in the 18th minute and came thanks to a touch of class from Mohamed Magdi, who slipped into the area and squared the goalkeeper before scoring in the right corner.
The second came just after half an hour when rookie Mohamed Sherif pounced on a poor header from Djene Dakonam to score.
The victory was effectively sealed in the 52nd minute when Egypt’s free kick from the left was allowed to bounce over the Togo defense, leaving Trezeguet all the time he needed to connect with him with his right foot.
Togo’s consolation came in injury time from a corner kick that was not properly cleared, allowing Elom Nya-Vedji to strike.
That result means Egypt and Comoros have eight points and appear to be the most likely to reach the final.
Kenya, who suffered a surprising 2-1 defeat in Comoros on Sunday, have three points and are the only other team that can qualify from the group, with matches against Egypt and Togo to play.
Madagascar 1-1 Ivory Coast; Ethiopia 3-0 Niger (Group K)
The fourth round of matches in Group K has left this wide open as neither Madagascar nor Côte d’Ivoire were able to open a lead at the top and Ethiopia came close to the top two.
Ivory Coast took the initiative in Madagascar after just 15 minutes, AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie scored from the penalty spot off a hand from Jeremy Morel.
A formidable shot gave Madagascar the equalizer six minutes after the break when captain Ibrahim Samuel Amada scored with a tremendous shot from the left corner of the area that found the upper right corner of the net.
The game in Ethiopia was delayed half an hour for no official reason, but it did not affect the hosts who took the lead against Niger via Amanuel Gebremikael in just 13 minutes.
The goal was created after some good work in midfield that resulted in the unmarked Shemeles Bekele slamming the ball into the box and his pass was received by Gebremikael’s left foot.
The hosts took control of the game just before the break with Bekele again providing the final pass for Mesud Mohammed to hit the top corner from 16 meters.
The victory closed with 20 minutes to go when a poor pass from Niger goalkeeper Moussa Alzouma hit his own defender, giving Getaneh Kabede an easy chance to score.
With two games to go, the Ivory Coast leads the group thanks to a better head-to-head record over Madagascar, both teams have seven points, Ethiopia passes to six and Niger remains at three.
Angola 0-1 DR Congo (Group D)
The Democratic Republic of the Congo closed in on the top two of this group with a narrow victory in neighboring Angola.
Fulham midfielder Neeskens Kebano scored the only goal of the game just after the hour with a good effort from outside the area.
The Gambia lead the group ahead of Gabon on goal difference, with both teams scoring seven points, after the Scorpions beat the Panthers 2-1 on Monday.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one spot in the top two, while Angola has just one spot, but still has a mathematical chance of qualifying for the final.
Rwanda 0-0 Cape Verde (Group F)
Rwanda held a point against visiting Cape Verde despite playing an hour with 10 men.
Amavubi trailed for most of the game after Ally Niyonzima was sent off for a second yellow card in the 30th minute.
With only one spot up for grabs from the group as Cameroon automatically qualifies as host, the race for the remaining spot is still open.
Cape Verde now equals Mozambique in the group with four points and, despite Rwanda only having two so far, it still has a chance of reaching the final.
Afcon 2021 Qualifiers Tuesday:
- Ethiopia 3-0 Niger (Group K)
- Madagascar 1-1 Ivory Coast (Grp K)
- Lesotho 0-0 Benin (Group L)
- Rwanda 0-0 Cape Verde (Grp F)
- Sudan 1-0 Ghana (Group C)
- Central Africa 0-2 Morocco (Grp E)
- Angola 0-1 Democratic Republic of the Congo (Group D)
- Sierra Leone 0-0 Nigeria (Group L)
- Go 1-3 Egypt (Group G)
- Namibia 1-2 Mali (Group A)
- Tanzania 1-1 Tunisia (Grp J)
Monday’s results:
- In swaziland 0-0 Congo (Group I)
- Malawi 0-0 Burkina Faso (Group B)
- South Sudan 1-0 Uganda (Group B)
- Sao Tome and Principe 2-4 South Africa (Group C)
- Zimbabwe 2-2 Algeria (Grp H)
- Botswana 1-0 Zambia (Group H)
- Gambia 2-1 Gabon (Group D)
- Mozambique 2-0 Cameroon (Group F)
Sunday results:
- Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Libya (Group J)
- Chad 1-1 Guinea (Group A)
- Comoros 2-1 Kenya (Group G)
- Guinea-Bissau 0-1 Senegal (Group I)
- Burundi 3-1 Mauritania (Group E)
