March 8 to 28, 2021 (World Cup Qualifiers [Africa Groups G-J])

A Chapter by Steve Clark

The following article provides an oversight for matches and tournaments taking place in 2021.

March 8 to 28, 2021 (World Cup Qualifiers [Africa Groups G-J])

World Cup Qualifiers in Africa ramped up this month.

Group G saw the Ugandans collect a vital away draw against Côte d’Ivoire. Emmanuel Okwi scored a wonder free kick in the 31st minute. From there, the Ivoirians were chasing the match, and despite fourteen shots, could only muster a tap in by substitute Max Gradel after an initial save.

Madagascar faced the might of Nigeria, where both sides were keen on attack. However, both goalkeepers kept the ball away from goal, coupled with poor target shooting from Nigeria in the first half, and Madagascar in the second. It took Onyinye Ndidi to come off the bench to break the deadlock deep in additional time, giving Nigeria a vital away three points.

Côte d’Ivoire made two changes to their starting line up in the hope of gaining three points against Mauritius. They did so, scoring twice in both halves from four different goal scorers. Ibrahim Sangaré opened the tale with a finish after receiving the ball in the box from an incisive pass. Number 11 Maxwel Cornet then also found the ball in a similar spot after a loose ball came directly to him as his body faced towards goal. Max Gradel, in the second half, cut back around defenders and managed to slot with his left, before Willy Boly stole the ball off an unaware Mauritian goalkeeper and pocketed into the open goal.

Madagascar held off the Ugandan attacking prowess for long periods of time, particularly right before halftime when the hosts had three corners back to back. Finally, the islanders’ defence broke down when Milton Karisa stole the ball and pegged the lead for Uganda. More attacks did not bring about a second goal, and it was a lapse in concentration that led to Paulin Voavy scoring in the 85th minute to gift Madagascar a vital away draw, their first points finally at the halfway stage of the Qualifiers. Uganda will rue their chances, eighteen shots in total, especially after having drawn away to the Ivoirians, and will have to regroup in July to keep in touch with the top two.

	African WCQ Gr G	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Côte d’Ivoire	4	3	1	0	10	+11
2	Nigeria	4	3	0	1	9	+3
3	Uganda	4	1	2	1	5	-1
4	Mauritius	4	1	0	3	3	-3
5	Madagascar	4	0	1	3	1	-10

Four different goal scorers, all strikers, hit the back of the net for Senegal against São Tomé and Príncipe in Group H. Boulaye Dia opened the scoring with an easy tap in, after Ismaïla Sarr gifted him the cross from the right wing. Sarr then doubled the lead in the eleventh minute. After the break, Habib Diallo curled a shot from outside the box and then was substituted for Famara Diêdhiou, who also scored in the 89th minute to round out an easy win for Senegal.

Both Kenya and the Seychelles fielded young sides, with the latter’s Tyrone Cadeau stunning the hosts. Ryan Henriette then doubled the lead with a header into an open goal after the Kenyan goalkeeper made an initial diving save. Veteran Michael Olunga pegged a goal back for Kenya, only for them to come up short on a day that should have been a straightforward victory.

Kenya’s youngsters were no match for Senegal six days later, faring worse than against the Seychelles as once again, Dia, Diallo and Sarr all scored their second goals in two games.

São Tomé bounced back from their 4-0 drubbing to win 3-1 against Congo DR. Marcos Barbeiro was the instigator of the win, scoring a brace, one in each half. Congolese midfielder Chancel Mbemba did even up the scores right before halftime, but his goalkeeper failed to punch a cross to safety in the following passages of play. Instead, it fell to Barbeiro, whose calm approach assured the lead. Harramiz Soares then came off the bench and headed home São Tomé’s third goal, and the full three points were theirs.

	African WCQ Gr H	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Senegal	4	3	1	0	10	+12
2	Seychelles	4	2	1	1	7	-3
3	São Tomé and Príncipe	4	1	1	2	4	-3
4	Congo DR	4	0	3	1	3	-2
5	Kenya	4	0	2	2	2	-4

Group I’s Cameroon started their March Qualifiers with a 2-1 away win against the Central African Republic. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scored with a cutback pass in the seventeenth minute. Karl Namnganda did equalise for the hosts, knocking in the goal after an initial Cameroon save. However, a lucky penalty scored by Karl Toko Ekambi gave the visitors the full three points.

Morocco were the visitors against Somalia, the latter fielding a young side, with their target being the 2026 World Cup and AFCON tournaments either side of them. The match was end-to-end football, with Morocco having the best chance, hitting the post. Somalia’s defence weakened right before the break, letting two goals slip past them. First, Ryan Mmaee ran with the ball before he snuck it into the back of the net. Number 17 Sofiane Boufal then caught a loose goalkeeper pass and slotted the second. Somalia worked hard in the second half, drawing more and more efforts on goal. Ibrahim Ilyas Mao made the most of a lapse in Moroccan concentration and pegged back a goal. It was not enough, but the Somalian youngsters know they can take it to the best of the African continent.

Morocco played away again, this time against the powerhouse of Cameroon. Though Cameroon had the greater chances, the score ended 0-0, with fourteen shots to the home side, compared with two. Yassine Bounou was easily the best afield, making ten key saves.

Somalia’s youth proved pivotal in defence as they visited Rwanda, ensuring a point from a scoreless draw. Both sides had minor chances in the first half, though it was Rwanda who turned around a possession deficit to look the better side. However, they could not find an effective path to goal, and only gained the draw in their only March match.

	African WCQ Gr I	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Cameroon	4	3	1	0	10	+4
2	Morocco	4	2	1	1	7	+3
3	Rwanda	4	1	2	1	5	0
4	Central African Republic	4	1	1	2	4	-1
5	Somalia	4	0	1	3	1	-6

Group J’s March matches started with a bang, with three first-half goals from Cape Verde Islands against Mozambique. Garry Rodrigues scored twice, while Kenny Rocha Santos wedged a run-and-shoot goal in between Rodrigues’ brace. Mozambique’s defence was able to stem the shots in the second half through sheer desperation; the score could easily have been 5-0.

Togo dominated nearly the full ninety minutes against Namibia. However, with only an own goal by Larry Horaeb (an unlucky deflection) keeping Togo in the lead, Namibia sought a late chance. Three shots on target led to a corner, which came off goalkeeper Malcolm Barcola to earn Namibia a vital draw, while Togo only registered two shots on target despite their high possession rate.

Defence became the order of the day for Mozambique six days later as they hosted Mali, trying to bounce back from their 3-0 loss. The first half’s shots were low key, with Mozambique having the best chance off a header from a free kick. As both sides used their substitutes early, it seemed the match would peter out to a scoreless draw; however, Vitinho had other ideas as he slid the ball under the Malian goalkeeper a cross with less than two minutes remaining in regulation time. Complacency in the lead, though, meant attacking midfielder Amadou Haïdara ran around the Mozambican defence and seized a vital point.

Togo tried again at home for three points, only to draw 2-2 with Cape Verde Islands. In fact, the visitors scored the opening goal, with Rocha Santos scoring his second in the March matches. Euloge Placca Fessou replied five minutes later, before Kevin Denkey gave Togo the lead. However, Júlio Tavares shot with sheer power from long range to level the match in the 65th minute, and from there, neither side could find the cracking shot on goal.

Cape Verde and Togo both have not lost a match, though the former is a win and draw ahead of the latter.