Nigeria’s World Cup qualification hopes dealt late blow; Egypt moves closer

By Canadian Press on March 25, 2025.

Zimbabwe’s Tawanda Chirewa scored in the final minute to deal a major blow to Nigeria’s World Cup qualification prospects in a 1-1 draw between the teams Tuesday.

Unbeaten Egypt made no such mistake as Zizo’s goal was enough for a 1-0 win over Sierra Leone in Cairo.

Zizo struck just before the break for the Pharaohs to maintain a five-point lead over Burkina Faso, which had defeated Guinea-Bissau 2-1 on Monday, in qualification Group A.

Nigeria’s nightmare

Nigeria star Victor Osimhen put the Super Eagles on course to claim just their second win in Group C when he scored in the 74th. Friday’s 2-0 victory over Rwanda had rekindled Nigeria’s qualification hopes.

But the 21-year-old Chirewa, a late substitute, equalized in the 90th to earn Zimbabwe a draw.

Meanwhile, South Africa defeated Benin 2-0 to consolidate the top spot. Bafana Bafana leads with 13 points from six rounds, five clear of Rwanda (which drew with Lesotho 1-1) and Benin. Nigeria stayed fourth in the group with just seven points.

Only the nine group winners secure automatic qualification. The four best-placed runners-up will compete to be the African contender in FIFA’s six-country playoff for the last two qualification spots at the World Cup next year in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Cape Verde remained top of Group D with a 2-1 win in Angola, though Cameroon responded with Vincent Aboubakar scoring twice in a 3-1 win over Libya. Cape Verde stayed a point ahead of Cameroon.

Sudan’s missed chance

Sudan lost control of Group B with David Sebit scoring in stoppage time to earn South Sudan a 1-1 draw.

It allowed both Congo and Senegal to take advantage, which they did with 2-0 wins over Mauritania and Togo, respectively.

Congo moved top of Group B on 13 points, one ahead of unbeaten Senegal and Sudan. Sudan dropped to third on goal difference. Sudan and Senegal drew 0-0 when they met on Saturday.

Morocco and Algeria were among the teams playing late qualifiers.

Black Stars twinkling

Ghana moved atop Group I by scoring a total of eight goals in back-to-back wins over Chad and Madagascar, helping ease the disappointment of failing to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations in November.

Otto Addo’s team eased to a 5-0 rout of Chad in Accra on Friday, then enjoyed a 3-0 win over Madagascar on Monday to seize control of the group.

Comoros, the surprise early leader, stayed three points behind Ghana on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Chad.

Elephants hold on

Ivory Coast needed goalkeeper Yahia Fofana at his best as it held on for a 1-0 win over Gambia on Monday to stay a point above Gabon atop Group F.

Sébastien Haller’s early goal was enough for the Elephants to win in Abidjan, keeping the team top after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had scored twice for Gabon to beat Kenya 2-1 and put the pressure on Sunday.

Ivory Coast, the reigning Africa Cup champion, had previously beaten Burundi 1-0 in Morocco on Friday, while Gabon enjoyed a 3-0 win over the Seychelles on Thursday.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Ciarán Fahey, The Associated Press