Ivory Coast qualified for the 2010 World Cup by drawing 1-1 in Malawi on Saturday and Cameroon moved closer to joining them with a 3-0 triumph over Togo.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba scored just 120 seconds after coming on in the second half to give the Ivory Coast an unassailable seven-point Group E advantage.
The visitors had been rocked midway through the second half at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre when Jacob Ngwira scored his first World Cup goal to put Malawi ahead.
PHOTO: AFP
Bosnia-born Ivory Coast coach Vahid Halilhodzic responded by sending on Drogba to score the goal that took the cocoa-producing west African country into a second consecutive World Cup tournament.
Ivory Coast have 13 points, Burkina Faso six, Malawi four and Guinea three and attention now turns to who will finish second and third after the final fixtures next month and qualify for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.
England coach Fabio Capello says Ivory Coast are capable of going far in South Africa next year, while Chelsea boss Carlos Ancelloti claims he would coach them for free at the finals, much to the annoyance of Halilhodzic.
Apart from talismanic Drogba, Ivory Coast also started with Barcelona midfield enforcer Yaya Toure on the bench, while an injury ruled out his older brother, Manchester City defender Kolo.
Resurgent Cameroon stayed top of Group A after outclassing shock 2006 qualifiers Togo in Yaounde.
Midfielder Geremi Njitap scored at the second attempt off a penalty to give the Indomitable Lions a halftime advantage against Togolese opponents led by reigning African Footballer of the Year Emmanuel Adebayor.
The Manchester City striker was substituted 15 minutes into the second half, however, after goals from Jean Makoun and Achille Emana had given Cameroon a 3-0 cushion.
Makoun netted off a pass from Inter striker Samuel Eto’o, who dribbled past four defenders, and Emana beat overworked keeper Kodjovi Obilale with a low drive.
Gabon stayed one point adrift after beating Morocco 3-1 in Libreville. Hicham Mahdoufi conceded an own-goal on the stroke of halftime to give Gabon a lead they stretched during the second half through Eric Mouloungou and Daniel Cousin, before Adel Taarabt snatched a late consolation goal.
A Cameroon side transformed by the arrival of French coach Paul le Guen have 10 points, Gabon nine, Togo five and Morocco three. The Lions cannot be overtaken if they triumph on Nov. 14 in Rabat.
Egypt kept alive hopes of overtaking Group C pacesetters Algeria with a fortunate 1-0 victory in Zambia courtesy of a strike from Hosny Abd Rabou. Algeria (plus five) lead Egypt (plus three) on goal difference.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS