Victorious in their first match on the first day, the DR Congo, Morocco, and Angola confirmed on the second day of the CAN 2025 qualifiers. Ethiopia (2-0), Lesotho (1-0), and Sudan (2-1) were their victims.
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With a third victory in a row in its last three official outings, the DR Congo is doing well. And this Monday, September 9, on the pitch of Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar es Salaam, the Ethiopians, who do not have an approved stadium, verified this at their expense. The Leopards did not dominate the debates, but demonstrated a solidity and realism that they often lacked during outings away from their bases. Sébastien Desabre’s men thus opened the score on a goal by Theo Bongonda on a service from Joris Kayembe (62nd).
The “Congolese Messi” had started the match on the bench and had to replace Chadrac Akolo at short notice, after half an hour of play (33rd). The Leopards made the break through their “super sub” Fiston Mayele. The Pyramids (Egypt) striker lived up to his reputation: coming on and scoring straight away. Seven minutes after taking Samuel Essende’s place, Mayele scored his third goal for the national team, taking advantage of an offering from Elia Meschack (76th). The Congolese take sole control of the H with two wins in as many outings.
Diaz’s number
The same result for Morocco, who won (0-1) in Agadir where they hosted… Lesotho, which does not have a CAF-approved stadium. In a wild match, played on a soaked pitch, the Moroccans struggled for a long time against a tough team. It took an individual feat from Brahim Diaz, who came on in the 57th minute, to deliver the Atlas Lions at the end of the match. The Real Madrid player inherited the ball at the edge of the penalty area, and after eliminating two defenders, placed a shot at the right post of Sekhoane Moerane, who was beaten for the only time of the evening (90+3). Before this final action, the Moroccans, despite having possession of the ball of more than 80%, had been ineffective against the defense of the Likuena (The Crocodiles).
Five days after surprising Ghana at home (1-0), Angola confirmed this victory by winning against Sudan (2-1) at the Estádio 11 de Novembro in Luanda. Dominant for almost the entire match, Pedro Goncalves’ men had to wait until the second half to logically take the lead. It was the essential striker Mabululu who opened the scoring from a penalty (50th). But the advantage was short-lived since the Sudanese reacted quickly and equalized, five minutes later through Mustafa Karshom (55th). Finally, Randy Nteka scored the winning goal less than ten minutes from the end after receiving a pass from the aptly named Mastro (81st). With two victories in two days, the Palancas Negras remain on the launch of their beautiful CAN in Ivory Coast, and have perfectly started their odyssey towards Morocco.
Also readCAN 2025: Schedule, results, and qualifying standings