Frenzied, chanting crowds greeted Algeria and Egypt’s soccer teams as they arrived in Sudan on Sunday to battle for Africa’s last qualifying place in the 2010 World Cup finals.
After a last minute equalizer from Egypt on Saturday night, the teams will play a decider tomorrow in Khartoum for the chance to play in South Africa next year.
Saturday’s last-gasp goal in Cairo left the nations tied on points, goal difference, goals scored and head-to-head record and requiring a single playoff match.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Sudan was chosen as the neutral venue for the match after FIFA made a draw on Wednesday with Egypt’s choice of neighboring Sudan being selected instead of Algeria’s preferred choice Tunisia.
Thousands of Egyptian laborers working in Sudan will help fill the stadium while Algerian flags began to appear on Sudanese cars throughout the capital.
“The greens all the way!” said Sudanese Khidr Osman, who was carrying an Algerian flag. He was joined by dozens of young Sudanese.
Egypt has a long and mixed history with Sudan of colonial rule as well as friendship but soccer remains a shared passion.
“When Sudan was playing Chad in Egypt, they weren’t supporting us,” Osman said.
“I’m with the Egyptians because they chose us to host this,” said businessman Mohamed Amin.
Meanwhile, thousands of supporters held a rally on Sunday in Algiers in support of their national team, which degenerated into attacks on Egyptian businesses.
The rally in began with fans chanting “One, two, three, Go Algeria!” as they thronged Air Algeria offices trying to get tickets to travel to Sudan for the match in Khartoum.
But it later descended into violence when fans broke through the metal shutters to smash the window and ransack the offices of Egypt Air, a journalist said.
The offices of mobile telephone company Djeezy, part of the Egyptian telecommunications group Orascom, was also ransacked, the Web site of the El Watan daily reported.
Twenty Algerians were injured in clashes in and around Cairo after Saturday’s match, Egyptian police said.
Egyptian and Algerian fans have a long history of violence.
■GHANA WIN IN ACCRA
AP, ACCRA
Matthew Amoah and Anthony Annan scored a goal each as Ghana twice rallied from a goal down to draw 2-2 with Mali in a World Cup qualifier on Sunday in Accra.
Ghana had already sealed its place at next year’s World Cup in South Africa after winning its opening four group games, but still fielded a full strength team.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
LONG TIME COMING: With the addition of Marcus Smart, the Washington Wizards finally held a team to under 100 points, the last team this season to do so The Detroit Pistons on Monday won their seventh straight game in the NBA with in-form Cade Cunningham making 32 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 106-97 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. The Pistons, who are in the playoff position, moved to 32-26, their best record at this stage of a season for 17 years. It was an all-round effort from Detroit with Tobias Harris adding 20 points and Jalen Duren making 19 rebounds along with his 12 points. It was a tight contest until Detroit pulled away late in the third quarter to tie their longest winning streak since the 2014-2015
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