Striker Eric Choupo-Moting scored three minutes from time as former winners Cameroon scraped to a 1-0 victory in Guinea-Bissau on Wednesday at the start of their 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
Four-time champions Cameroon, keen to revive flagging fortunes against weaker opposition, produced a labored display in the first-round, first-leg match.
Elsewhere, the Democratic Republic of the Congo eased to a 4-0 triumph in the Seychelles, while Cape Verde Islands won by the same scoreline in Madagascar.
Photo: AFP
Alain Kaluyituka scored twice for Congo, who were ahead after just eight minutes.
Dady and Ryan Mendes netted first-half goals to set up victory for Cape Verde, who are emerging as an improving force in African soccer.
New cap Sofiane Feghouli, the Valencia striker, grabbed a 57th-minute winner as Algeria came from behind to defeat Gambia 2-1.
Former champions Nigeria, forced to take part in the early stages of qualifying after missing out on this year’s finals, were held to a goalless draw in Rwanda despite the return of striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni.
Yakubu, who had a goal ruled out for offside, was playing for his country for the first time since the 2010 World Cup and partnered Peter Odemwingie in attack.
Emmanuel Adebayor was a no-show as Togo lost 2-1 in Kenya, Allan Wange getting the winning goal midway through the second half.
Adebayor failed to arrive for the match in Nairobi, much to coach Didier Six’s frustration.
Burundi captain Valery Nahayo struck late as his side won 2-1 against a weakened Zimbabwe, who left behind their coach and several players implicated in an alleged match-fixing scandal.
There was another win for tiny Sao Tome and Principe, who overcame Lesotho in a preliminary-round tie in January, as they beat Sierra Leone 2-1.
The return legs are in June. The winners advance to the final round of qualifiers in September and October and from there the winners will be drawn with the teams who competed at the recent Nations Cup finals.
Meanwhile, pressure continued to mount on South Africa coach Pitso Mosimane after his side were held to a goalless draw at home by an under-strength Senegal in a friendly international on Wednesday.
Another unimpressive performance by the home side extended their winless run to six games.
South Africa had several chances to score, but squandered with their final touches against a young Senegal side, vastly changed from the team that was bundled out early at last month’s African Nations Cup.
“It’s a very positive result for a young side that we hope can now be the basis of our future team,” Senegal caretaker coach Karim Sega said.
Mosimane, vilified last year after he failed to understand the competition regulations and botched up the permutations in South Africa’s qualifier for this year’s Nations Cup, said he would push on with his preparatory plans despite the setback.
However, officials had warned before the game they would re-consider his future if the team failed to win.
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