AFCON 2020 Round of 16 Matches Three to Six

The following article provides an oversight for matches and tournaments taking place in 2020.

AFCON 2020 Round of 16 Matches Three to Six

June 29-30, 2020

 

Ghana 3 Mozambique 2

 

The shootout match between Ghana and Mozambique saw the west Africans come out on top after a cracking match for the ages.

 

Mozambique’s tactics early were to attack without relent, and the pressure they built up led to a gap in the Ghanaian defence. In the eighth minute, the ball ended up at the feet of right back Nanani, who, instead of working down the right wing, cut back into the middle of the field. He held off the potential tackles and shot with his left and weaker foot, hitting the inside of the post. Mozambique had the crucial early lead needed to overcome Ghana.

 

A second would place Mozambique in prime position for the match. Maninho was found leading onto a ball that required a solid parry from Richard Ofori, though the shot was straight at the goalkeeper.

 

In the thirteenth minute, Nanani had another attempt; his shot was blocked, and became easy pickings for Ofori.

 

Ghana doubled down in defence as they halted any shots at goal. Then, as the west Africans moved forward, midfielder Mubarak Wakaso edged forward. As he shot on goal, goalkeeper Júlio Franque got enough purchase on the ball to slow it down. However, neither him nor the Mozambican defence could react in time as the ball just made it over the line, drawing the game level at the half hour mark.

 

Mozambique, though, responded the way they knew: through attack. Witi led onto a through ball, and though he was able to chip Ofori, there was not enough power on the chip. In the next passage of play, however, Nené stepped up and fired in similar fashion to Nanani’s goal, only without hitting the inside of the goal, but the back of the net.

 

The match became a shootout in the truest sense as Samuel Owusu made the most of a midfield turnover. He waited for the ball to be passed to him alone in the box, and as he chested the ball to the ground, his little touch took the defender out of the way before his left foot found the net.

 

In the 43rd minute, as Witi led onto a through ball, Andy Yiadom caught the striker and gave away not only a free kick, but being the last defender, the referee showed him a straight red card. Nené’s free kick did not live up to the hype; the ball fell straight to Ofori.

 

Down to ten players for just over a half, Ghana maintained a 3-3-3 formation, though some cracks in defence continued to show. Jordan Ayew, however, tried in vain to take the lead, only to smack his volley into the stands.

 

Instead, Ayew adjusted his next attempt in the 65th minute from outside the box. Making the most of Ghanaian pressure on the Mozambican midfield and defence, the striker peeled back the shades from the Ghanaian supporters as they cried with utter delight at the choice goal.

 

Ghana immediately shifted the formation to having four defenders. The decision paid off as Mozambique attached down the left wing; substitute Stanley Ratifo’s shot needed a sliding block from John Boye.

 

Ayew nearly secured the match in the 69th minute with a second goal; his left footer from outside the box aimed for the other pocket in the goal, only to miss the mark.

 

Ghana continued to keep the ball down their attacking half. In the 86th minute, Mohammed Kudus had a ping at goal, only to fire wide to the left.

 

Mozambique pushed late for a third goal and equaliser, only it was too late as Ghana held firm to reach the Quarter Finals. Ghana now tackle Mali in the last eight, and they will hope to secure a Semi Final berth on the back of Wakaso’s Player of the Match performance.

 

Cameroon 1 Guinea 3

 

On Tuesday June 30th, 2018 World Cup participants Guinea ensured a spot in the Quarter Finals after a 3-1 win over Cameroon.

 

Guinea had made some minor adjustments to their side. Both nations looked dangerous early, but it was Guinea who caught the Cameroon defence on a fast break. Mohamed Yattara scored in his own sweet style as he was found alone in the box.

 

Just over five minutes had elapsed and already Cameroon were on the back foot, needing to fight to get back in the contest. Christian Bassogog tried in vain as his shot was blocked. Similarly, André-Frank Zambo Anguissa could not bypass the Guinean defence with his shot.

 

Cameroon’s issues increased with defensive midfielder Arnaud Djoum receiving a yellow card, but it only worsened when Banana Yaya’s poor tackling on Naby Keïta caused a penalty for the Guineans. Oddly, Julian Jeanvier stepped up to the plate, and he made no mistake, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.

 

Guinea’s goalkeeper, Ali Keita, nearly brought their opponents back in the match with a missed ball from a pass back. Cameroon drew forward and tried scoring via Anguissa, only to not have enough power behind the shot.

 

Bassogog had the next best attempt in the 28th minute as he rose from right midfield to meet a cross from the left wing.

 

Down the other end, Aboubacar Camara nearly had a goal, only to miss the mark, after he led onto a through ball from Keïta.

 

Cameroon continued attacking, and Vincent Aboubakar needed two attempts to gain back a goal in the 39th minute. His first was a chest down off a cross from left midfield. The second was hitting home (thanks to a deflection) after Bassogog set the ball perfectly for him from the right wing.

 

Cameroon’s tackling woes, however, returned, and a free kick metres from the penalty box gave Mohamed Mady Camara every opportunity to score; his shot flew over the bar.

 

Cameroon removed Djoum from the field at the break, not because of the yellow card, but because of a fall from an aerial challenge.

 

Meanwhile, Guinea played keepings off for long periods of the second half, trying to hold onto possession whilst searching for weaknesses in the Cameroon defence. Ibrahima Bangoura came off the bench and produced a quality cross from Keïta as the Guineans racked up 16% better passing accuracy than Cameroon, only for the talisman to miss the mark. Issiaga Sylla then popped another substitute, Amadou Diawara, in the perfect position to score, only for his right footer to miss to the left. Guinea’s third substitute, Ibrahim Cisse, also missed to the left with his header.

 

Instead, it was Player of the Match Yattara with his second goal that ensured the win for the Guineans in the 83rd minute, after Cameroon’s goalkeeper André Onana made the initial save. The ball bobbled right in front of Yattara, and as he ran onto it, he fired it into the back of the net before Onana had a chance to respond.

 

In the end, Guinea defeated Cameroon 3-1, progressing to the Quarter Finals. Cameroon will rue their lost opportunity, having won every match in the group stages. Guinea, having come third in their group, show that early attacks lead to successful wins in knockout stages. They now take on hosts Egypt.

 

Morocco 3 Nigeria 3 after extra time, 2-4 on penalties

 

Nigeria continued high-scoring games as they Morocco took them all the way to penalties, only to see the west Africans hold firm against the high-pressure situation and book a place in the last eight.

 

Both Morocco and Nigeria made adjustments to their starting eleven as Samuel Kalu looked to score first; Yassine Bounou, the Cameroon goalkeeper, was up to the task. Similarly, Daniel Akpeyi kept out Noussair Mazraoui’s header off a free kick.

 

In the tenth minute, William Ekong had a header thwarted, before the next passage of play needed a deft block and tackle as Kalu and Moses Simon both lined up for goal. Simon also had a chance after Ahmed Musa set him up from the left wing; his header burst aside to the right of goal.

 

Musa himself had two attempts in the fifteenth minute; Bounou thwarted both. Then, in almost the same passage of play with Simon setting the ball to Musa, Musa instead brought the ball down with his chest. As he did so, Morocco’s Mbark Boussoufa slid to clear the ball, but took out Musa in the process. Kalu ensured the penalty counted, and the Nigerians had the lead due to the pressure placed on the Moroccan defence.

 

Idrissi Oussama had an attempt to draw level in the 21st minute, only to miss to the left of goal. Down the other end, Simon’s volley should have made it two, only to be blocked. Instead, Kalu gave Nigeria a second, as the ball came straight through the middle of the park, before a through ball found the striker and he pocketed into the back of the net with relative ease.

 

Nabil Dirar had an opportunity for Morocco in the 33rd minute, only his shot was too weak. Kalu tried for his hat trick but missed to the left. Both defences, instead, held firm for the rest of the half.

 

It was after the break that Morocco stepped up their attacks. Noureddine Amrabat’s left footer from a through ball missed to the right. His right foot volley then missed to the left. His teammate, Youssef En Nesyri, brought the Moroccans back into the fray in the 56th minute. The cross from Hamza Mendyl was impeccable in finding En Nesyri’s head, and soon it was game on for the fans!

 

Boussoufa nearly made up for the penalty he gave away when he shot from outside the box; the ball narrowly missed the goal to the right. Down the other end, Oghenekaro Etebo also missed his shot; his went to the left.

 

En Nesyri then tried to equalise in the 74th minute, but the shot was saved. The ball was eventually passed out to a substitute in full flight; Bourabia Mehdi found the gap between the diving goalkeeper and the post, gifting Morocco every shot at progressing to the Quarter Finals.

 

Hakim Ziyech should have given Morocco the lead, only for his chip shot not to pay off. From there, both defences held the opposition adrift.

 

In extra time, Nigeria’s Musa brought about a choice Bounou save. Ziyech then tackled perfectly as John Obi Mikel looked to shoot from the edge of the box. On the counterattack, Morocco found themselves in a three-on-three, and gave Khalid Boutaib the ball alone against Akpeyi, and he made no mistake as Morocco completed the come-from-behind play.

 

Mikel worked hard down the left wing to wrestle back the goal, and his third cross found Player of the Match Musa. Unfortunately, from his angle, there was no way his volley would score.

 

Mikel then smacked the crossbar with his shot in the second period of extra time, before missing to the left in the follow-up play. However, the referee deemed it a corner, and Mikel made no mistake, volleying the corner into the back of the net.

 

Morocco had first dibs from the penalty spot, and Younes Belhanda made no mistake. Victor Osimhen, Youssef Ait Bennasser and Musa all scored their penalties. However, Ziyech missed, whilst Simeon Nwankwo ensured Nigeria had the advantage. Ayoub El Kaabi missed in similar fashion to Ziyech, leaving William Ekong with the chance to make it four from four for Nigeria, and his success earned Nigeria the spot in the Quarter Finals.

 

Tunisia 3 São Tomé and Príncipe 2

 

Tunisia held off a valiant second half from São Tomé and Príncipe to reach the last eight via a hat trick from Wahbi Khazri.

 

Taha Yassine Khenissi started Tunisia off with a bang, missing to the right of goal. Instead, it was Khazri who opened the scoring, cutting back in from the left wing and nailing with his right boot.

 

Tunisia continued to attack from the left, right and down the middle. Dylan Bronn had a chance to volley in the 21st minute from a free kick; though the crowd jeered as they rose to catch the wayward shot.

 

After São Tomé’s first foray forward, Tunisia countered, with Ellyes Skhiri running down the left wing. His cross to Khenissi was perfect; the volley towards goal required a defensive block. From the fallout of the corner, Oussama Haddadi and Skhiri tried in vain to shoot. The former’s shot was blocked and the second brought about a diving save from goalkeeper Primo. Again, Primo jumped the same way to stop Khazri’s header off the corner.

 

Then, in the 29th minute, Haddadi’s cross found Khenissi alone in the box; his shot flew to the left of goal.

 

Two minutes later, Khazri repeated his first goal to score again; this time, he aimed for the bottom right corner of the goal, and again, made no mistake.

 

In the next attack, Ali Maâloul tried to replicate Khazri’s efforts; his shot flew across the face of goal and out for a goal kick. As half time approached, Maâloul then sent a long ball to Khazri alone, where the Tunisian won a free kick off a yellow-carded Ivonaldo Viegas as he cut back out of the penalty box. The free kick came to nought; however, in the next passage of play, Khazri earned his hat trick as he headed a cross from the right wing with immense power.

 

Ahmed Khalil, who created the assisting cross, tried the same for Khenissi; his shot unfortunately flew wide of the mark.

 

São Tomé threw caution to the wind straight after the break, and after working down the right wing, the ball fell to Gualdino Mauro, who turned and shot, with the ball trickling over the line.

 

São Tomé attacked again, resurgence in their hearts, and soon the game became end-to-end football. Then, just after the hour mark, Harramiz Soares went on a run-and-pass to cut through the Tunisian defensive line. His shot brought about a solid save, only for the ball to fall to Capito, whose header found the back of the net.

 

The game was suddenly alive and neither side wanted to give an inch. Both strikers were double-teamed as they were found alone with the ball. Then Capito had a chance to equalise as a free kick from right midfield found his head; the ball drifted to the left of goal.

 

Eduardo Varela had a half-chance volley go begging as he missed a difficult chance. Both sides continued to look dangerous pressing forward; the defence held firm, particularly with offsides as the catalyst in halting key plays. In the end, Tunisia held on for the win to reach the Quarter Finals.