In the late matches of Tuesday’s CAF Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers, Benin, Mali, and Côte d’Ivoire each claimed victory in their respective games, while the clash between Congo and Cameroon finished in a stalemate.
Benin defeated Mauritania 2-1, with a late comeback attempt by Mauritania. Benin led 1-0 at halftime. Rodolfo Aloko made it 2-0 soon after the break with a close-range goal. Mauritania got a penalty in the 79th minute when Djeidi Gassama was fouled.
Although Benin’s goalkeeper Marcel Dandjinou saved Gassama’s first penalty, Aboubakary Koïta scored on the second attempt. Mauritania looked for an equaliser, but Benin held on to win.
In the match between Congo and Cameroon, the score ended 1-1. Geltany Bantsiele scored for Congo in the 24th minute. However, after halftime, an own goal by Congo’s goalkeeper Melvin Zinga tied the game for Cameroon. Both teams pushed for a winner but could not score again.
Mali narrowly beat Liberia 1-0. The game was scoreless for over an hour until Ange Martial Tia scored in the 79th minute after a pass from Kamory Doumbia. Liberia tried to respond but could not break through Mali’s defence.
Côte d’Ivoire won 2-0 against Somalia after a long wait. Somalia’s goalkeeper Ibrahim Hussein made several good saves. Côte d’Ivoire finally scored in the 89th minute when Yann Gboho found the net after a corner. Bazoumana Touré added a second goal in stoppage time, sealing the win.
