Heavyweight contenders in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers faced unexpected challenges on Monday, with Ghana being held to a draw while Morocco and Senegal barely secured narrow victories against lower-ranked opponents.
In a dramatic turn of events, Ghana let a late goal slip, resulting in a 1-1 draw against Niger. Meanwhile, Senegal needed a penalty to eke out a 1-0 win over Burundi, and Morocco left it until stoppage time to claim a slim 1-0 victory over Lesotho thanks to Real Madrid star Brahim Diaz’s brilliant individual goal.
Ghana’s struggles continued as they gave away a late goal to settle for a 1-1 draw with Niger. Alidu Seidu had put Ghana ahead just before halftime with a stunning long-range strike, but their defense faltered in the 81st minute when Oumar Sako equalized for Niger. This draw leaves Ghana with just one point in Group F, following a disappointing home loss to Angola last week. Angola tops the group after Randy Nteka’s late winner secured a 2-1 victory over Sudan in Luanda.
Senegal, fielding a full-strength side, faced an unexpectedly tough battle against Burundi in Group L. Despite being 120 places above their opponents in the FIFA rankings, Senegal struggled to break through.
They eventually won a penalty after Sadio Mane was kicked in the face, but he was controversially not allowed to take the spot kick due to receiving treatment off the field. Ismailia Sarr stepped up and calmly converted the 71st-minute penalty, ensuring Senegal’s narrow 1-0 win and placing them at the top of the group with four points.
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Morocco, who will host the 2025 AFCON finals, managed to avoid an embarrassing result against Lesotho, winning 1-0 with a stoppage-time goal from Brahim Diaz.
Despite being guaranteed a spot in the tournament as hosts, Morocco opted to participate in the qualifiers and made nine changes from their 4-1 thrashing of Gabon last week. Lesotho, unable to host the match due to stadium issues, ceded home advantage, and Morocco struggled to break them down until Diaz’s late heroics in Agadir.
-DR Congo secured their second win in Group H with a 2-0 away victory against Ethiopia, hosted in Dar-es-Salaam. Goals from Theo Bongonda and Fiston Mayele sealed the win, keeping DR Congo on top with six points.
-Uganda continued their impressive start in Group K with a 2-0 home win over Congo in Kampala, pushing them to four points after nearly upsetting South Africa in their previous match.
-In Group E, Togo pulled off a stunning comeback, scoring in stoppage time to draw 2-2 against Equatorial Guinea in Malabo, with Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba netting the crucial equalizer.
-Madagascar and Comoros played out a 1-1 draw in their Group A Indian Ocean derby, held in Tunisia due to stadium constraints on both islands.
As the second round of AFCON qualifiers wraps up on Tuesday with 15 fixtures scheduled, the race for spots in the 2025 finals is heating up.
