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Manucho stars as Angola stun Senegal

Senegal's Abdoulaye Diagne Faye, left, watches as the ball goes into the net for a goal against Angola during their match in Tamale on Sunday. PHOTO :AP

Manchester United-bound Manucho starred in Angola's 3-1 upset win over Senegal to leave his side on the brink of qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals.

In Sunday's second Group D tie Carlos Alberto Parreira's South Africa folded tamely against Tunisia, the 2004 title winners beating the 2010 World Cup hosts by an identical scoreline.

It was a survivor from Roger Lemerre's Cup winning Tunisian side, veteran striker Francileudo Dos Santos, who scored after eight and 34 minutes with Chaouki Ben Saada claiming the second.

Steven Pienaar grabbed a consolation goal three minutes from full-time for South Africa, who seem destined to make a third consecutive first-round exit.

That left Parreira, a World Cup winning coach with Brazil, with a real scrap on his hands to get South Africa, joint bottom on one point with Senegal, into the quarter-finals.

Angola on the other hand are flying high, level on four points with Tunisia, who await them in their final first round tie on Thursday, after Manucho stole the spotlight in Tamale.

A draw will take both teams through to the last eight.

The teenager's double lifted Angola to only their second triumph in 11 Nations Cup matches spanning four tournaments while 2002 runners-up Senegal lost by more than one goal for the first time in their 42-match Cup history.

Senegal shaded the first half and led through an Abdoulaye Faye header only to be taken apart in the second as Manucho pounced twice before Flavio Amado added the killer third.

Angola manager Oliveira Goncalves conceded that Senegal had turned up as pre-match favorites but said: "The strongest side doesn't always win."

Senegal's Polish coach Henri Kasperczak resigned yesterday.

"I have offered my resignation to the football federation and it has been accepted," Kasperczak told a news conference.

"I have told the players of my decision. I'm the one who is responsible for the results," he said.

In Senegal's capital,Dakar, students angry over their team's defeat briefly blocked a main road with burning refuse.

The fire brigade and police quickly intervened and no injuries were reported.

With another half a dozen goals added in Sunday's games the overall tally for the competition stands at 54, some 21 more than at the same stage in Egypt two years ago.

Ghana's pre-match build-up for yesterday's clash with Morocco involved a gospel sing-a-long with Ghanaian President John Kufuor at the team's hotel in Accra.

He told the team to ignore taunts from fans which had driven Udinese striker Asamoah Gyan to pack his bags and nearly quit the squad on Saturday "and win against Morocco."
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