The Ivory Coast and South Africa were the big winners from Monday’s World Cup Qualifying action, with both claiming home victories over continental heavyweights to move to the top of their respective groups.
The lone night game had Cameroon losing 2-1 to hosts Ivory Coast in a Group D clash at the Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan. The result – which saw a brace of goals for the Elephants’ Sebastian Haller and one for the Indomitable Lions’ Nicolas Ngamaleu – means the Ivory Coast now top the standings on four points with Cameroon on three. Mozambique (one point) and Malawi (zero) will meet in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
Seven matches were slated for today, but only six took place, with Morocco’s scheduled Group I clash in Conakry postponed due to a coup d’etat in host nation Guinea.
The pick of the afternoon clashes saw Niger rack up a 4-2 away win over Group A rivals Djibouti in neutral Rabat, with goals from Victorien Adebayor (two), Mohamed Wonkoye and Amadou Sabo. The match also saw goals for the ‘hosts’ from Anas Farah Ali and Warsama Hassan, while Hassane Amadou was sent off late on for the victors.
By contrast, the other two afternoon kick-offs were tight, constrained affairs: 10-man Uganda (who had Murushid Juuko sent off in the second half) held Group E leaders Mali 0-0 in Entebbe, while Benin and DR Congo drew 1-1 in their Group J match in Cotonou after goals from Dieumerci Mbokani and Jordan Adeoti. The Squirrels are the early table-toppers on four points, though Tanzania could join them as co-leaders if they beat Madagascar at home tomorrow.
The early-evening matches saw South Africa go top of Group G with a narrow, but deserved 1-0 home win over Ghana in Soweto – with Bongokuhle Hlongwane scoring the goal late on – while Liberia recovered from their opening defeat to Nigeria with a 1-0 win over Central African Republic in Group C. The Lone Star also struck their winner late in the game, with Kpha Sherman netting in the 86th minute.
The second Matchday in the group stage of Africa’s WCQ tournament will wrap up with 10 fixtures across the continent on Tuesday 7 September, headlined by Cape Verde hosting Nigeria, Senegal battling Congo, Algeria visiting Burkina Faso and a battle between former African champions Zambia and Tunisia.
Africa WCQ results, Monday 6 September
Guinea v Morocco – Postponed
Benin 1-1 DR Congo
Djibouti 2-4 Niger
Uganda 0-0 Mali
Central African Republic 0-1 Liberia
South Africa 1-0 Ghana
Ivory Coast 2-1 Cameroon
