The race to decide Africa’s representatives at the 2010 World Cup will be whittled down to 20 teams this weekend, setting up a potentially thrilling final qualification phase next year.
Benin, Cameroon and Nigeria are already through to the draw in Zurich later this month where the final 20 candidates will be divided into five groups.
But the other 17 qualifiers will be only be determined after the 22 scheduled matches today and tomorrow.
The likes of Burkina Faso, Egypt, the Ivory Coast, Morocco and Tunisia are almost certain to progress but 2006 World Cup finalists Angola, Ghana and Togo do not have the same privilege.
Togo, whose Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor has launched a one-man boycott of the national team after a row over travel arrangements, are particularly vulnerable to early elimination.
Even if they beat lowly Swaziland today, they face missing out on the final phase of the qualifiers.
Adebayor sits out a second successive match after walking out on the eve of last month’s game in Zambia when his call to meet the Togo Football Federation president went unheeded.
Togo’s problems have opened the door for Swaziland to emerge as the Cinderella team of the campaign to date.
The tiny southern African kingdom will top Group 11 if they win the match, which is being played in Ghana because of a ban on internationals in Togo after home fans attacked Mali players a year ago in Lome.
“We are going there for a kill,” Swaziland’s key midfielder Denis Masina said.
Meanwhile, Senegal prepare to host Gambia today in a make-or-break qualifier. Coach Lamin Ndiaye knows his future hinges on the outcome today in Dakar.
Algeria (9 points) top the table ahead of a fixture at lowly Liberia (2) while Gambia and Senegal have eight each with the ‘Scorpions’ second because of a better goal difference, plus three to plus two.
Victory for Senegal over opponents they have not lost competitively to since 1962 should see them safely into the final qualifying phase as group winners or one of the best eight runners-up.
A defeat would spell the end for the home side and even a draw might not be enough to earn a place in the third-round draw.
Ndiaye wants Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade among a capacity crowd, believing the presence of the head of state “would be a source of exceptional motivation for the players.”
Ghana could feature in a three-way tie at the top of Group Five and effectively need a deluge of goals to keep up their qualifying chances but go into today’s match against Lesotho in Sekondi without the injured Asamoah Gyan and Michael Essien.
Angola must beat Niger in their Group Three match in Luanda tomorrow to have any hope of qualifying.
‘DREAM’: The 5-0 victory was PSG’s first Champions League title, and the biggest final win by any team in the 70-year history of the top-flight European competition Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League for the first time as Luis Enrique’s brilliant young side outclassed Inter on Saturday in the most one-sided final ever with teenager Desire Doue scoring twice in an astonishing 5-0 victory. Doue supplied the pass for Achraf Hakimi to give PSG an early lead and the 19-year-old went from provider to finisher as his deflected shot doubled the advantage in the 20th minute. Doue scored again just after the hour mark, ending any doubt about the outcome before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ran away to get the fourth and substitute Senny Mayulu, another teenager, made it five. Inter were
FRUSTRATION: Alcaraz made several unforced errors over four sets against Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, who had never made it past the third round in a major competition Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached the fourth round of the French Open after laboring past Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the Friday night session. The second-seeded Spaniard had never before played Dzumhur, a 33-year-old Bosnian who had never been past the third round at any major tournament. “I suffered quite a lot today,” Alcaraz said. “The first two sets was under control, then he started to play more deeply and more aggressively. It was really difficult for me.” Dzumhur hurt his left knee in a fall in the second round, and had treatment on Friday on his right leg during the
The horn sounded on Wednesday night to signal a third straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final, as the Florida Panthers celebrated merely by hopping over the boards and several heading over to congratulate goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. It was a subdued celebration seemingly more befitting a regular-season win for the reigning Cup champs. “I remember a few years ago, it felt like such an accomplishment from where we were at one point,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said, adding: “It’s all business and we’ve got a bigger goal in mind.” The Panthers closed out the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, with a 5-3 victory in
STRONG CONNECTION: Although she has considered switching nationalities, Garland said that if it was not for Taiwan’s support throughout her career, she would not be in Paris British-Taiwanese player Joanna Garland on Tuesday became the first Taiwanese to clinch a victory in a main singles draw of the French Open since 2020 after she outlasted the US’ Katie Volynets in Paris. The world No. 175, Taiwan’s highest-ranked female player in singles, said she would rely on her self-belief as she prepares for her second-round match at the French Open after overcoming a serious injury to qualify for a maiden Grand Slam appearance. After navigating her way through the qualifiers last week, Garland secured her first win at the main draw of a Grand Slam by battling past world No.
RSS