In mirrored clashes from four days ago, Sierra Leone ‘welcomed’ Ivory Coast in Monrovia, while Mauritania, as one of the few proper hosts in this AFCON QUalifiers round, faced Egypt in Nouakchott. Both matches ended in a one-nil win, but the scoreboard in Liberia was surprising.At Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex, Leone Stars surprised the Group G leaders Ivory Coast by defeating them with a late goal. Not only did they score that one deciding goal, but they also controlled the encounter in its entirety.AFCON2025Q: Kwesi-Appiah’s Sudan sends the Black Stars into a black holeEmerse Fae’s men were not looking their best, especially given the fact that four days ago they easily defeated their today’s rival (4-1). This Tuesday afternoon, Sierra Leone had more shots on goal, more corners more interceptions, all that with less ball possession.The deciding moment of the match came in the 85th minute when Amadou Bakayoko took advantage of the cross from the left flank and got up to head and sent the ball into the back of the net.⚽️GOAL | 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 1-0 Côte Ivoire 🇨🇮 | Amadou Bakayokopic.twitter.com/JHcgbzrhhe— e360hubs football ⚽ (@e360hubs) October 15, 2024 This win will not help the Leone Stars much, given they only top Chad in their group, while the Ivorians will not dwell much over the defeat, as they need only one more win to qualify for the AFCON 2025.Meanwhile, Egypt struggled in Mauritania but somehow managed to take all three points, thus punching their ticket for the next year’s continental tournament.Without Mohamed Salah, all eyes were on in-form Omar Marmoush. And that, it seems, did not sit well with the Eintracht Frankfurt’s forward. The Lions of Chinguetti held the Egyptians away until the very end – Pyramids’ striker Ibrahim Adel replaced Trezeguet in the 84th minute and only seconds later a shot from his own half ended up beating Mamadou Diop, the Mauritanian goalkeeper who was out of position.Ibrahim Adel’s goal enough for record champions #Egypt to win 1-0 in #Mauritania and claim the ticket to next year’s AFCON in Morocco.Four wins out of four for the Pharaohs. pic.twitter.com/hE3mr4cCBP— Oluwashina Okeleji (@oluwashina) October 15, 2024 The Lions of Chinguetti stay locked to the bottom of Group C with only three points won, the same as Cape Verde.AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS – QUALIFIERSTuesdayChad – Zambia 0-1 (0-0)/Musonda 70/Lesotho – Gabon 0-2 (0-0)/Babicka 55, Effaghe 84/Malawi – Senegal 0-1 (0-0)/Mane 90+6/South Sudan – Uganda 1-2 (1-1)/Juma 21 – Omedi 15, Leku 66 og/Sudan – Ghana 2-0 (0-0)/Al-Tash 62, Abdel Rahman 65/Tanzania – Dr Congo 0-2 (0-0)/Elia 88, 90+4/Botswana – Cape Verde 1-0 (0-0)/Sesinyi 52/Congo – S.Africa 1-1 (0-0)/Bassouamina 45+3 – Mokwana 33/Guinea B. – Mali 0-0Mauritania – Egypt 0-1 (0-0)/Adel 85/Niger – Angola 0-1 (0-1)/Zini 1/Rwanda – Benin 2-1 (0-1)/Nshouti 70, Bizimana 75 pen – Hountondji 42/Sierra Leone – Ivory Coast 1-0 (0-0)/Bakayoko 85/22.00: (22.0) Cental African Republic (10.5) Morocco (1.10)22.00: (6.25) Comores (3.50) Tunisia (1.65)22.00: (7.25) Ethiopia (3.60) Guinea (1.50)Libya – Nigeria POSTPONED***odds are subject to change***
