With almost all the fifth-week matches in the AFCON group stages now complete, Zimbabwe has secured qualification after drawing with Kenya, while Kenya exits the tournament due to this result.
In the 32nd minute, Tawanda Maswanhise put Zimbabwe ahead, capitalizing on a long pass from goalkeeper Washington Arubi. Kenya’s hopes were dwindling, but Jonah Ayunga managed to equalize in the 52nd minute, making it 1-1. However, Kenya couldn’t score again, sealing their elimination.
Guinea-Bissau narrowly escaped elimination against Eswatini.
Eswatini took the lead in the 81st minute with a goal by Phila Thabo Mkhontfo, nearly knocking Guinea-Bissau out of the tournament. But Carlos Mané saved Guinea-Bissau with a last-minute goal, keeping them alive. Guinea-Bissau will advance if they beat Mozambique by at least two goals in their next match.
Zambia clinched their spot in the next round and took the top spot from last year’s AFCON champions after defeating Ivory Coast 1-0 with a goal from Kennedy Musonda.
Egypt, one of the tournament’s strong contenders, dropped points for the first time.
Despite taking the lead with a goal from Taher Mohamed in the 31st minute, Egypt couldn’t respond when Ryan Mendes converted a penalty for the opposition in the 63rd minute, leaving the match to end in a 1-1 draw.
Although Egypt’s qualification is secure, the second team to advance from their group remains undecided, with Botswana needing only a point to hold the advantage over their rivals.
In a disappointing AFCON campaign, Ghana continued their five-match winless streak and confirmed their exit from the tournament.
Despite taking the lead against Angola with a brilliant goal by Jordan Ayew, Ghana could only hold their advantage until the 84th minute, when Zini scored for Angola, eliminating Ghana. Although Ghana’s goalkeeper Abdul Manaf Nurudeen saved a penalty, it wasn’t enough to keep them in the competition.
In Group B, Morocco once again proved their dominance.
After falling behind to Gabon in the 4th minute, the World Cup semi-finalists responded ruthlessly. Goals by Jamal Harkass and Brahim Diaz, scored within six minutes of each other, took the score to 3-1 by halftime. Morocco continued their scoring spree in the second half, with Youssef En-Nesyri extending the lead to 4-1 in the 81st minute. Substitute Ismael Saibari then sealed Morocco’s victory with a brilliant goal, leaving Gabon’s hopes hanging by a thread.
In the final match of the evening, Comoros secured their spot in the knockout stages while simultaneously eliminating Gambia.
Gambia had initially taken the lead in the 18th minute with a goal from Alassana Jatta, but their hopes were dashed when Rafiki Said equalized in the 25th minute. In the 90th minute, Myziane Maolida scored from a well-executed corner, ensuring Comoros advanced to the next round.