Chiquinho Conde became the first Mozambican coach to secure a victory in the final stages of the competition, with the Mambas beating Gabon 3-2 at the Adrar Stadium in Agadir. Equally sensational is Sudan’s coup against Equatorial Guinea. The former City player drags Algeria to the round of 16, while Ivory Coast and Cameroon share the match.
We have to wait until the end of the first half for the Group F challenge to really heat up, with Mozambique taking the lead by two goals towards the end. After an initial half hour without much excitement, the lead came thanks to a well-executed set piece: Geny Catamo crossed into the area and Faisal Bangal headed home from a few steps away.
Moments later, the outsiders doubled their lead: Domingues was brought down in the area by Gabon’s Bruno Ecuele Manga and Catamo converted from the spot.
Mozambique even came close to making it three when Witi hit the crossbar, but instead of 3-0, it found itself at 2-1: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang closed the gap for Gabon with the last ball of the first half.
The pace remains high even in the second half, with the scoreboard updated almost immediately after returning to the pitch. After seeing their double lead halved before the break, Mozambique surprised Gabon’s defense: Witi fed right back Diogo Calila, who entered the area and headed past Loyce Mbaba, putting his team ahead by two goals.
One step away from a historic result, the tension grows for Mozambique with 14 minutes to go, when Alex Moucketou-Moussounda hits a loose ball in the area and reopens the match.
Mozambique’s players felt the pressure in the final minutes, but victory finally arrived in the sixteenth match played in the Africa Cup of Nations. A success that revives their hopes of qualification, while Gabon remains last in Group F after losing both of their first two matches.
Sudan displayed a real lesson in cynicism, claiming a surprising 1-0 victory over Equatorial Guinea and reviving Sudanese hopes of reaching the knockout stages of the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time since 1970.
Both teams were coming off a defeat in the first group match, so a positive reaction was needed from both sides. It was Equatorial Guinea who started the best, wasting two great scoring opportunities in the first 25 minutes: Sassuolo midfielder Pedro Obiang came close to taking the lead by kicking high from close range after a poor defensive clearance that had put him in a position to score easily.
The desire to win was evident on both sides, despite the poor quality in the final metres, as perfectly demonstrated by Equatorial Guinea’s quick restart immediately after the break, with substitute Jose Nabil taking center stage and firing just wide, coming close to scoring in his team’s best chance so far.
Sudan entered the game around the hour mark, continued to believe and found the surprise goal in the 74th minute: a poisonous free kick was unfortunately deflected by Torino defender Saul Coco, who could only watch in desperation as his team fell behind.
Sudan managed to defend their lead until the end, so the national team number 117 in the world ranking achieved a surprise victory that rekindles their hopes of qualifying after their debut defeat against Algeria.
Big disappointment for Equatorial Guinea, who dominated the match but will now have to face the group favorites, Algeria, and will need a feat to hope to progress to the next round.
Algeria remain unbeaten in regular time in 18 games, having claimed a 1-0 victory against Burkina Faso in Group E, securing their place in the knockout stages of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
Algeria started better and were denied a penalty in the first two minutes when Bertrand Traore went down in the area. However, the penalty came in the 22nd minute, when Rayan Aït-Nouri was adjudged to have been brought down by Ismahila Ouedraogo, and Riyad Mahrez wrong-footed Herve Koffi to give the Greens the lead with his seventh decisive contribution in his last five international matches.
With the momentum in their favor, Algeria could have doubled their lead nine minutes before half-time when Mohamed Amoura fired over from close range despite not being pressed.
Burkina Faso had done little to trouble their opponents offensively in the first half, but came very close to equalizing just before the break when Pierre Kabore’s close range header hit the right post.
Giorgi Minoungou, who scored the winner in injury time against Equatorial Guinea on Wednesday, came close to a repeat with the first chance of the second half when his right-footed shot from outside the area went just wide of the right post shortly after the hour mark.
At the other end, Ibrahim Maza came close to scoring on two occasions where Minoungou had failed. The striker first shot just wide of the left post, then was denied the joy of the goal by Koffi, who blocked it from close range after a good personal move.
Burkina Faso suffered their first defeat in this edition of the AFCON. That said, the Stallions still remain in a favorable position, occupying second place heading into the final match of the group. They also know that a point against Sudan will be enough to achieve their fifth qualification for the knockout phase in the last six editions and thus reach the Greens in the round of 16.
No winner between Ivory Coast and Cameroon, who shared the match with a 1-1 draw thanks to two goals in five minutes at the start of the second half. A result that reopens the games in group F, with both national teams in the lead ahead of Mozambique, third with 3 points.
Ivory Coast started strongly in the first half: Ghislain Konan broke through on the left and put a cross into the area. His cross hits the crossbar of the goal defended by Devis Epassy in the 2nd minute.
Cameroon is crushed in their own half and struggles to get going again. The constant and intense pressing of the Ivorians is well organised. The Indomitable Lions finally react with a soft cross from Carlos Baleba to the far post, where Darlin Yongwa strikes but the ball ends up on the outside of Yahia Fofana’s net (11′).
The Cameroonians have grown in the last few minutes, increasing the intensity in midfield: proof of this is the crossbar hit by Christian Kofane on a counterattack led by Bryan Mbeumo and Danny Namaso on the right, with the number 26 kicking a flat right shot and Fofana deflecting it onto the upright with his fingertips.
Cameroon restarted very strongly in the second half, Ivory Coast responded and Kessié scored, but the goal was disallowed for offside. Then it’s Danny Namaso, from the edge, who tries with his left foot: his shot is deflected onto the crossbar by Kessié, who saves his team. The match heats up and Ivory Coast breaks the deadlock with an extraordinary goal from Amad Diallo. Konan throws long from right to left for the Manchester United player, who targets Nouhou, centers himself and releases a precise shot that beats Epassy in the 51st.
The lead did not last long as Junior Tchamadeu equalized immediately afterwards with a deflected shot. The Stoke City player shoots from the edge, Konan unfortunately deflects and the ball goes past Fofana, who can do nothing on the strange trajectory, 1-1.
In the final, Ivory Coast struggled to build play and was unable to materialize their scoring opportunities due to a lack of precision. The two teams end with a draw, with the obligation to win against Gabon for the Elephants and against Mozambique for the Cameroonians.
