The second day of the elimination stage has given us the second quarterfinals pairing. It was an interesting afternoon and evening at AFCON and it was a day to remember for two sides who find themselves as participants of the continental tournament for the first time.Guinea were considered favourites against the Gambian national team but the sturdy Scorpions proved the majority wrong. The other debutants to the competition, Comoros Islands had a streak of unlucky circumstances against them and even so gave a die-hard performance against African giants – Cameroon. They did lose to the hosts but the Coelacanths can be more than proud of themselves and what they have shown.AFCON 2021: The end of the road for the brave Comoros as they are eliminated by the tournament hostsHeroes of the day – Chaker Alhadhur and the whole ComorosAhead of the match, the Coelacanths were struck with peculiar news. Rules set before the tournament meant that Comoros could’ve avoided playing without a goalkeeper if a player tests negative – however, the rules seemingly changed mid-tournament and despite one of their keepers being negative, he was not allowed to play. Unable to rely on either of their shotstoppers (Covid + injuries), Comoros had to place their left-back Chaker Alhadhur between the posts.To make things worse, Comoros captain Nadjim Abdou saw a direct red card in the 7th minute of the match.Imagine all that and seeing mighty Cameroon on the other side of the pitch. Scary isn’t it? Not for Comoros.Even though they lost the match, they fought with all their might, did all they could, scored a wonder goal and managed to even bring the hosts to a scare late in the match.Alhadhur made a few amazing saves and we are pretty sure that if Ali Ahamada, or any other custodian, was allowed to play – it would have been a whole different game of football.Chaker Alhadhur 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/jE741q9X5j— Nabil (@F__reiheit) January 24, 2022 Losers of the day – GuineaLet’s not take it away from the Gambians. They deserved to win and to qualify through but everyone expected more from the Syli National.Even though they were lacking the services of their best player – Naby Keita – they should have given more against the tournament debutants.There were few waves in which the Guineans showed some intensity and a chance to take control of the match – but it was a combination of their indifference and Gambian determination that sent the National Elephants home.A reminder that 🇬🇳 Guinea have to go back home to Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya after the tournament. #AFCON2021 pic.twitter.com/ye0QhQ24Zo— Owuraku Ampofo (@_owurakuampofo) January 24, 2022 Goal of the day (and possibly of the tournament) – Youssouf M’ChangamaGuingamp midfielder’s free-kick will surely end up on highlight reels for years to come. It was Juninho Pernambucano reincarnated – the power, the lack of rotation on the ball, the accuracy, the helplessness of the goalkeeper.It gave hope to the Coelacanths that a miracle could happen but too many things were against Comoros’ squad today and they have nothing to regret, given all the hurdles they faced.Youssouf M’changama’s goal for Comoros against Cameroon pic.twitter.com/ZDxbLf3xvj— Ralf RangNick (@SniffRades) January 24, 2022 AFCON 2021: Up the Gambia! The Scorpions sting Guinea to clutch the quarterfinalsShock of the dayUnfortunately, horrible news surfaced during the match in Yaounde. Several people died and others were injured in a stampede at the entrance to the Olembe Stadium – the seriously injured were transported to the Messassi hospital center. The first unofficial report reports at least seven people dead.🔴[DRAME] #CAN2021 : plusieurs personnes sont décédées et d’autres blessées lors d’une bousculade survenue à l’entrée du stade d’Olembe. Les blessés graves ont été transportés au centre hospitalier Messassi. Un premier bilan non officiel fait état d’au moins 7 morts. #CAMCOM pic.twitter.com/WMYlINrRxY— LSI AFRICA (@lsiafrica) January 24, 2022 AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS – LAST 16Tuesday19:00: (1.70) Senegal (3.50) Cape Verde (6.50)22:00: (1.35) Morocco (5.10) Malawi (11.0)Wednesday19:00: (2.30) Ivory Coast (3.05) Egypt (3.80)22:00: (1.63) Mali (3.50) Equatorial Guinea (7.75)
