March 4 to 17, 2019 Global Futbol Matches

The following article provides an oversight for matches and tournaments taking place in 2019.

March 4 to 17, 2019

African World Cup Qualifiers (Group Stage) began this week after the initial period of knockouts. Last time, the Sudan’s qualification campaign almost sent them to Russia, only they came unstuck at the final hurdle. Their campaign for 2022 started poorly against Liberia at home, where the only real chance of scoring came from the substitute El Nour. Against the run of play, Liberia piled on enough pressure that created confusion in the Sudanese defenders, resulting in an own goal. A similar fate nearly befell Chad on home soil as the Gambians scored first thanks to a solid strike from Adams. It was a stoppage time left-footer from Kédigui that managed to salvage a draw for the Central African nation. As for Zimbabwe, who travelled to Niamey, the referee awarded a free against them after initial thoughts that they had netted a scrambled affair in the 21st minute. Niger worked into the game and scored before halftime through Sidebe. However, Zimbabwe’s captain Musona pegged the score back straight after the break, and a tight tustle ensued for the winning goal. It came the way of Niger’s Cissé four minutes later: a brilliant header from a corner. It was enough for Niger to record a win and provide a foundation to take Group C by the scruff of the neck.

 

eSwatini started their campaign well with a two-nil win over Tanzania. Both goals came from headers; one in each half, through consistent goalscorer Mkhontfo and tireless worker Musa Dlamini. South Africa found the weak link in the Malawian defence by squaring the ball back to the semi circle and shooting from near the penalty spot. Two goals in the first half came this way, and nearly a third by midfielder Kenana. The home side then piled on four more goals in the second half, including a second for Player of the Match Mabunda and substitute Ndlovu. Malawi, however, did have chances to score, thanks to a lacklustre South African defensive structure, but four shots sailed wide of the mark. Lesotho maintained their momentum from last year by progressing from the knockout matches against Eritrea by gaining a point away to Benin. The Benin players had opportunities to score, only to be thwarted by the post and goalkeeper (and Player of the Match) Khetsekile. Right before the final whistle, substitute Soukou slid the ball into midfielder Dossou, only for the shot to sail to the left.

 

In Zambia, Gabon struggled to defend in the first half after they went one-nil down inside five minutes, thanks to a scramble in the box and finally a punt by Mulenga into the net. Zambia scored twice after the break through Sinkala and Shonga, before a stoppage time consolatory goal for Gabon. Sierra Leone’s rise up the rankings is sure to happen, especially after winning away against the usually adept Mauritanians. Sierra Leone scored through Kei Kamara’s brilliant header in the 57th minute, taking hold of a game where Mauritania struggled to pool more than a few passes together before turning the ball over to the opposition.

 

In Ouagadougou, neither the home side nor Equatorial Guinea could find an effective route to goal. Substitute Toure had two late chances, but one flew over the bar and the Equatorial Guinea keeper, Ovono, thwarted the other. Pitroipa also had a shot thud against the crossbar in the first half. Angola travelled to Algiers, with the home side dominating the game after an early goal from Feghouli set the scene for the day. When Mahrez slipped a cross to substitute Soudani, who then punted the ball on the half volley into the goal, it seemed like the game was over. However, Mateus returned the favour with a great run-and-goal, making the final 19 minutes rather tense, until defender Atal needed two shots to gain access beyond the blocking defenders and into the net. A 3-1 victory for Algeria.

 

In Group F, Egypt started perfectly with a three-nil overkill of Tunisia. Defender Ahmed El Mohamady started the goal-scoring feat just before the hour mark, after Egypt dominated much of the game. Then Tarek Hamed scored a brace, the first on the cusp of the 18-yard box, and the second finishing off a brilliant play between Salah, Sobhy and the Number 8, earning Hamed the Player of the Match award. The Congo held out away to Botswana, despite the home team having half-chances in the second period to score, but were unable to hone their skills towards a winning goal. Goalkeeper Massa Mohikola was deemed the best on the field with seven solid saves.

 

Nigeria started solidly against Uganda, with John Ogu everywhere in the attacking half. This hard work paid off as he was able to head home a goal for the Nigerians after a splendid cross from defender Collins. The second half saw Nigeria create some further attacks, but there were signs of team miscommunication, something that Mauritius and Madagascar hope to exploit in the following games. A second goal came via Ahmed Musa after a cutback pass from the right by Iheanacho. Two goals was enough, but the Nigerians know they must improve to ensure top spot in Group G. Mauritius surprised Madagascar with four solid goals, even though they went down to ten men when Dorza was sent off. That included a double from Noel, with his second coming in stoppage time. Madagascar were thought to have a team worthy of making it far in this group, but this match showed they are still miles behind the rest of the African nations.

 

In Group H, the Congo DR stumbled upon a way of bypassing the Kenyan defence, and with an array of persistence, scored twice through Assombalonga. The Kenyans, though rattled, worked their way back into the game, and soon had drawn level in the 47th minute thanks to Mayieko Mohammed’s second goal. Both sides had the opportunity to win the game, but neither slotted the winner, and the Congo DR left the happier of the two sides, knowing this away draw is the most crucial of them all, particularly against a 2018 World Cup side. Thirty minutes was all it took for Senegal to post five goals on the scoreboard against the Seychelles, including two each from Niang and Player of the Match Gueye. However, that score remained for the rest of the game, as the Senegalese took their foot off the accelerator, and missed a few half-chances. Still, they lead Group H, and will have every opportunity to win the group and advance to the knockout stages.

 

In the first half, Rwanda and Morocco both struggled to get into a position to worry the goalkeepers, until Sofyan Amrabat’s goal on the cusp of halftime. As the game carried on, it seemed Morocco would gain a vital away win. Substitute Jean Claude Iranzi had other ideas. With his first touch, he headed a corner home in the 85th minute, leveling the scores and sending the Rwandan home crowd into a frenzy. What sent them delirious was his cross into Eric Rutanga, who found a gap between the goalkeeper Bono and the post, and therefore a crucial three points to the Rwandans. The Central African Republic’s Youga Christopher scored early against Somalia, with his side taking control of the middle of the park, but not penetrating into the final third enough. The second half saw the game open up, and soon Foxi Kethevoama slotted from a tight angle after Habib’s shot was initially saved. Somalia had a chance to wrestle a way back into the game, only goalkeeper Geoffrey Lembet saved substitute Burale’s penalty with his legs. On the counter, the Central African Republic sought a third goal, and achieved it in stoppage time, once again scored by Kethevoama.

 

In Group J, Mali took the game to home side Togo, and should have had a goal, if the referee had played advantage. Instead, with Emmanuel Adebayor working his guts up forward, the Togolese had two goals by the 24th minute; one from the talisman, after setting up Fa-Doh Laba’s initial netter. Both sides traded attempts for much of the remainder of the match, until Adebayor’s deft touch found substitute Serge Gakpé free, and as he twisted around in a circle, snuck the ball around goalkeeper Diarra. The Cape Verde Islands went one better and scored four against Namibia, including a double from Nuno Rocha. It was clear the home side were the stronger of the two, but was unable to find a crushing blow when in front of goal. Finally, Garry Rodrigues scored as half time approached, which opened up the floodgates in the second half as the Cape Verde Islanders piled on three more goals. Nuno Rocha’s two goals came three minutes apart before he assisted Djaniny three minutes after that to bring about an ideal start to the qualification campaign.

 

The next African Qualifiers start on June 10th.

 

In the CONCACAF region, Curacao started their World Cup campaign with striker Hooi pooling a brace and nearly a hat trick in the first half. It was the right hand post that denied him the privilege against Dominica. The away team will find it tricky to bounce back in the return leg. Puerto Rico scored in the third minute through Ramos, but did not capitalise on their chances after that against the Turks and Caicos Islands. Those misses could come back to haunt them when the two teams play the reverse leg.

 

Guyana started their first match against St Lucia with two goals by halftime from Daniel. The home team then took their foot off the pedal, seemingly thinking about the second leg and how to stop St Lucia on their home turf. Finally, Daniel’s hat trick came about in stoppage time after great team passing on the left flank leading to a free kick. Substitute Barrington won the heading battle on the opposing edge of the box, where the ball fell to Daniel. He turned and fired with his left, completing his threesome and setting up the team for a real shot at progression. The Dominican Republic also won by three goals against Belize, scoring all of them in the first half. Their right back Martinez started the ball rolling, before setting up his teammate Heredia for a second, and Edipo Rodriguez slotting a low shot in the bottom left hand corner in the shadows of the break.

 

Bermuda scored first away to the Cayman Islands through Wendell Ming; however four minutes later the reply came through Player of the Match Andrés Ruiz. From then on, both sides tussled for the win, but the game ended in a 1-1 scoreline. Many Bahamas supporters thought it strange to be starting Dwayne Forbes, particularly at left midfield instead of his typical left back role. This decision by coach Dion Godet over the US Virgin Islands was pivotal as Forbes’s Player of the Match performance set up Lesly St Fleur’s header, before slotting his own goal from the centred ball of Troy Pinder. Substitute Esaias Charles had a chance to snip back a goal for the US Virgin Islands, but the shot flew to the right of goal. Will two goals be enough for the Bahamans to progress beyond the knockout stage?

 

Antigua and Barbuda set out to dominate the first half against Cuba, with 60% possession. That helped with a counterattacking goal from Josh Parker in the 36th minute. The second half, however, was a tighter fight, as Player of the Match Rhys Browne with his high count of passes, dribbles and tackles, tried to penetrate balls to the strikers. This was not to be, and the 1-0 scoreline remained. Cuba can go into the return leg knowing they have a solid chance of reversing that scoreline, and achieving more goals than their counterparts on home turf.

 

Meanwhile in Montserrat, two first-half goals against Aruba, both assisted by Brandon Comley, set up the first-leg win for the home side. Comley found Lyle Taylor out wide for the first, whilst the second found a gap beyond the Aruba defenders, finding a leading Bradley Woods-Garness, who slotted into the net. This performance may be enough to move past the knockout stage, but Aruba will have other ideas when they face off again.

 

Similarly, St Kitts and Nevis scored twice against Anguilla. The first was in the 4th minute through Gerard Williams, allowing the home side to take control of the game. In the second half, Anguilla had chances to level, but on the counter, St Kitts and Nevis attacked and scored via Harry Panayiotou’s header from Player of the Match Lois Maynard’s cross. Barbados won by a goal over the British Virgin Islands, through a penalty taken by Ramon Manning. The away team, however, were able to thwart any long periods of possession for Barbados, and this will stand them in good stead for the return leg.

 

Despite Brian Elshot’s hat trick, Suriname still lost to Canada. Both sides traded blows in the first half, before Canadian Samuel Piette scored his second goal in the 47th minute. From there, Suriname were playing catch up, and struggled to find a leveling goal after Russell Teibert’s goal made it four goals for the Canadians. Still, Suriname can hold their heads high, even though their chances of progressing in the World Cup Qualifiers are slim. They will now look to transfer this momentum to the fifth Match Day of the Nations League as they travel to Anguilla.

 

This week’s friendlies included a Harry Kane-led romp of Montenegro for England: four-nil. Uruguay flew to Stockholm and came away with a 3-1 win against a lacklustre Swedish side. Icardi found the net twice as Argentina defeated Peru, whilst the United States gained a 2-0 away win over Paraguay.

 

Match Day 9 began in the Women’s Nations Cup Qualifiers. England could only find a solitary goal against Greece. Kosovo managed to keep France to a two-goal win, as did Kazakhstan losing to Spain. Israel continued their mighty campaign as they drew away to Estonia. Ghana managed a crucial away win over Tanzania. Japan finally managed a win, this time against India. China easily took care of Palestine, whilst Bangladesh romped four in the Philippines’ net. Uruguay continues to dominate in South America, with a four bagger against Ecuador.

 

March 5 2022 Men’s WCQ Africa MD3 Group A ·  Sudan 0 Liberia 1 ·  eSwatini 2 Tanzania 0 Group B ·  South Africa 6 Malawi 0 ·  Chad 1 Gambia 1 Group C ·  Niger 2 Zimbabwe 1 ·  Benin 0 Lesotho 0 Group D ·  Zambia 3 Gabon 1 ·  Burkina Faso 0 Equatorial Guinea 0 Group E ·  Algeria 3 Angola 1 ·  Mauritania 0 Sierra Leone 1 Group F ·  Egypt 3 Tunisia 0 ·  Botswana 0 Congo 0 Group G ·  Nigeria 2 Uganda 0 ·  Mauritius 4 Madagascar 0 Group H ·  Kenya 2 Congo DR 2 ·  Senegal 5 Seychelles 0 Group I ·  Rwanda 2 Morocco 1 ·  Central African Rep. 3 Somalia 0 Group J ·  Togo 3 Mali 0 ·  Cape Verde Islands 4 Namibia 0   U17 Men’s Geographical WCQ MD 3

March 8 Women’s Nations Cup Qualifiers Match Day 9 ·  Slovakia 3 Malta 1 ·  Hungary 3 Czech Republic 1 ·  Lithuania 1 Belarus 2 ·  France 2 Kosovo 0 ·  Spain 2 Kazakhstan 0 ·  Romania 3 Montenegro 1 ·  Ukraine 4 Northern Ireland 0 ·  Wales 3 Georgia 0 ·  Latvia 0 Bosnia 2 ·  Belgium 3 Moldova 0 ·  Estonia 1 Israel 1 ·  England 1 Greece 0 ·  Tanzania 1 Ghana 2 ·  Swaziland 1 Ethiopia 1

March 9 Women’s Nations Cup Qualifiers Match Day 9 ·  Japan 2 India 0 ·  China 3 Palestine 0 ·  Iran 1 Nepal 0 ·  Afghanistan 3 Jordan 1 ·  Myanmar 2 Hong Kong 1 ·  Bangladesh 4 Philippines 0 ·  Iceland 2 Albania 2 ·  Germany 3 Andorra 0 ·  Venezuela 3 Bolivia 1 ·  Paraguay 1 Chile 1 ·  Uruguay 4 Ecuador 0   Women’s Futsal MD 7 Egypt 3-0 Uruguay Portugal 3-1 Spain Denmark 2-1 Peru Croatia 3-2 Nigeria Serbia 2-4 Costa Rica Sweden 3-2 South Korea England 4-2 Tunisia Colombia 4-1 Japan

March 13 Men’s WCQ North America MD 1 KO ·  Curacao 3 Dominica 0 ·  Puerto Rico 1 Turks and Caicos Islands 0 ·  Guyana 3 St Lucia 0 ·  Dominican Rep. 3 Belize 0 ·  Cayman Islands 1 Bermuda 1 ·  Bahamas 2 US Virgin Islands 0 ·  Antigua and Barbuda 1 Cuba 0 ·  Montserrat 2 Aruba 0 ·  St Kitts and Nevis 2 Anguilla 0 ·  Barbados 1 British Virgin Islands 0 ·  Suriname 3 Canada 4 Men’s Friendlies ·  England 4 Montenegro 0 ·  Sweden 1 Uruguay 3 ·  Peru 1 Argentina 4 ·  Paraguay 0 USA 2

March 14 Women’s Futsal MD 8 Egypt 4-2 Russia Portugal 2-2 Morocco Denmark 2-2 Australia Croatia 4-2 Argentina Serbia 1-2 Switzerland Sweden 3-2 Germany England 4-1 Panama Colombia 2-2 Poland

March 16 Women’s Futsal MD 9 Egypt 1-1 Saudi Arabia Portugal 3-1 Iran Denmark 2-2 France Croatia 1-1 Iceland Serbia 3-3 Brazil Sweden 1-1 Mexico England 3-2 Belgium Colombia 3-0 Senegal