African superstar Samuel Eto'o overcame an assault claim to score as Cameroon opened their challenge for a record sixth World Cup appearance with a 2-0 win over Cape Verde Islands on Saturday.
Barcelona striker Eto’o converted a penalty 10 minutes into the second half in Yaounde to complete a comfortable triumph, set up by an early goal from veteran defender Rigobert Song.
A local radio reporter accused the three-time African Footballer of the Year of head butting him on Friday after tempers flared over limited media access to the “Indomitable Lions.”
Cameroon competed at the World Cup in 1982, 1990, when they became the first African quarter-finalists, 1994, 1998 and 2002 and are poised to dominate Group 1 in the second qualifying phase for the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
Tanzania were surprisingly held 1-1 at home by Mauritius in the same group, with Danny Mrwanda scoring a 70th-minute equalizer after Wesley Marquette had edged the Indian Ocean islanders in front in the first half.
Namibia snatched a dramatic 2-1 victory over Kenya in Windhoek thanks to a Costa Khaiseb goal 60 seconds from time in Group 2, which includes Guinea and Zimbabwe and is likely to be among the most fiercely contested.
Germany-based Oliver Risser put this year’s shock Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers Namibia ahead after 17 minutes and Allan Watende leveled late in the first half for the “Harambee Stars.”
Uganda, who came agonizingly close to reaching the Cup of Nations in Ghana last January, battled to overcome minnows Niger 1-0 in a Group 3 showdown in Kampala, courtesy of a goal 11 minutes into the second half from Ibrahim Sekagya.
Botswana fared even worse at home to Madagascar in Group 7, having to settle for a 0-0 draw after Pontsho Moloi thought he had scored in each half, only to have both efforts disallowed for offside.
Rwanda had better luck at home to Mauritania in Group 8, with Saidi Abedi converting a penalty and Bokota Labama also on target in the closing stages to complete a 3-0 victory set up by a Olivier Karekezi goal in the first half.
Malawi brutally exposed the limitations of Djibouti, the lowest ranked of the 47 second round competitors, with six second-half goals that earned the central Africans an 8-1 win in Blantyre.
Russia-based Esau Kanyenda led the goal romp with a hat-trick and Elvis Kafoteka, Joseph Kamwendo, Moses Chavula, Robert Ngambi and Noel Mkandawire also scored for the “Flames” in the Group 12 encounter.
Daya Hassan struck midway through the first half for Djibouti, who are not strangers to humiliating losses, having being overwhelmed 9-1 away to the Democratic Republic of Congo in a World Cup qualifier eight years ago.
The 2010 World Cup qualifiers double as eliminators for the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola, also in 2010.
Jobe Bellingham on Tuesday admitted to having “anxieties” on following in brother Jude’s footsteps after joining Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Jobe Bellingham, 19, is two years younger than Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in 2023 after three years at Dortmund. A centerpiece of the England national team, Jude Bellingham has emerged as one of the best players in the world in recent seasons. The younger Jobe Bellingham joined Dortmund in June from Sunderland after their promotion to the English Premier League. He admitted he understood what the perception would be ahead of the move to Germany. “It’s something you do think about.
Before Tuesday’s 7-2 win at the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy suggested “most people couldn’t tell you five players on our team.” A look at the standings would indicate more Brewers players soon will be recognized by more fans. After all, it is difficult to overlook a team that not only continues to extend their lead in the National League Central, but also boasts the best record in the majors. “What we’re doing in here right now is special,” right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta said after allowing only four hits and one run in five innings, while setting a career high with
A baseball team from New Taipei City won the US Pony Palomino Division World Series yesterday in Laredo, Texas, defeating the US West representative team from Azusa, California, 2-1. Ku-Pao Home Economics and Commercial High School earned the right to represent Taiwan in the Pony Palomino (17 to 18 age group) World Series after winning this year's Wang Chen-chih Cup, a competition named after Taiwanese-Japanese baseball legend Wang Chen-chih (王貞治), also known as Sadaharu Oh. In the championship game against Azusa, Ku-Pao's starting pitcher Luo Yu-yan (羅于晏) was erratic early, giving up two hits in the bottom of the first inning, followed
Taiwanese pitcher Teng Kai-wei took the mound in New York on Saturday as the starting pitcher for the San Francisco Giants in his MLB season debut against the New York Mets, pitching 3.1 innings and allowing five runs. The Taiwanese right-hander struggled early, giving up three runs in the bottom of the first inning, including a three-run homer to Mets slugger Pete Alonso — his 250th career home run. However, Teng was not fazed and soon found his footing, holding the Mets scoreless in the bottom of the second and third innings. Meanwhile, Mets starter Kodai Senga of Japan made a few errors
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