Nigeria's World Cup qualification hopes dealt late blow; Egypt moves closer
Nigeria's World Cup qualification hopes dealt late blow; Egypt moves closer
Zimbabwe’s Tawanda Chirewa scored in the final minute to deal a major blow to Nigeria’s World Cup qualification prospects in a 1-1 draw between the teams Tuesday.
Unbeaten Egypt made no such mistake as Zizo’s goal was enough for a 1-0 win over Sierra Leone in Cairo.
Zizo struck just before the break for the Pharaohs to maintain a five-point lead over Burkina Faso, which had defeated Guinea-Bissau 2-1 on Monday, in qualification Group A.
Nigeria star Victor Osimhen put the Super Eagles on course to claim just their second win in Group C when he scored in the 74th. Friday’s 2-0 victory over Rwanda had rekindled Nigeria's qualification hopes.
But the 21-year-old Chirewa, a late substitute, equalized in the 90th to earn Zimbabwe a draw.
Meanwhile, South Africa defeated Benin 2-0 to consolidate the top spot. Bafana Bafana leads with 13 points from six rounds, five clear of Rwanda and Benin. Nigeria stayed fourth in the group with just seven points.
Only the nine group winners secure automatic qualification. The four best-placed runners-up will compete to be the African contender in FIFA's six-country playoff for the last two qualification spots at the World Cup next year in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Cape Verde remained top of Group D with a 2-1 win in Angola, though Cameroon responded with Vincent Aboubakar scoring twice in a 3-1 win over Libya. Cape Verde stayed a point ahead of Cameroon.
Sudan lost control of Group B with David Sebit scoring in stoppage time to earn South Sudan a 1-1 draw.
It allowed both Congo and Senegal to take advantage, which they did with 2-0 wins over Mauritania and Togo, respectively.
Congo moved top of Group B on 13 points, one ahead of unbeaten Senegal and Sudan. Sudan dropped to third on goal difference. Sudan and Senegal drew 0-0 when they met on Saturday.
Morocco and Algeria were among the teams playing late qualifiers.
Ghana moved atop Group I by scoring a total of eight goals in back-to-back wins over Chad and Madagascar, helping ease the disappointment of failing to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations in November.
Otto Addo’s team eased to a 5-0 rout of Chad in Accra on Friday, then enjoyed a 3-0 win over Madagascar on Monday to seize control of the group.
Comoros, the surprise early leader, stayed three points behind Ghana on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Chad.
Ivory Coast needed goalkeeper Yahia Fofana at his best as it held on for a 1-0 win over Gambia on Monday to stay a point above Gabon atop Group F.
Sébastien Haller’s early goal was enough for the Elephants to win in Abidjan, keeping the team top after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had scored twice for Gabon to beat Kenya 2-1 and put the pressure on Sunday.
Ivory Coast, the reigning Africa Cup champion, had previously beaten Burundi 1-0 in Morocco on Friday, while Gabon enjoyed a 3-0 win over the Seychelles on Thursday.
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