CAIRO: Over the span of 11 days, 16 nations at the 25th African Cup of Nations fought to cement their place in the quarter-finals. After injuries, extra-time and plenty of heart-stopping moments, only eight can continue the race toward the prestigious title. Twenty-four games have been played thus far, and football analysts, viewers and players have enjoyed a high standard of free-flow football, although the best is yet to come.
There were few surprises throughout the first round. The Guinean team, which impressed all teams and fans with its fast paced play and highly skilled players, thrashed the otherwise favored Tunisian team. The poor level of football put forth by Togo, one of Africa s five representatives in this year s World Cup, however, was an unexpected twist – the team lost all three matches. Furthermore, Angola’s early exit, along with Ghana – another two of Africa’s World Cup qualifiers – leaves many in Africa wondering at the continent’s fate in the upcoming Cup.
As for the level of competitiveness, group A, alongside group D, allowed fans to witness the fiercest battles. In Group A, host nation Egypt qualified as top of their group after beating eventual second-place Ivory Coast by three goals to one. After match day two, the Ivory Coast was on top, with two resounding victories against Morocco and Libya.
Egypt, following a dour game against their Northern African neighbors, which ended with a goalless draw, had two options to ensure their qualification; another draw or a victory. Egypt against the Ivory Coast was a high profile game, and following a close first-half ending even, the Egyptians fought back in a well-played second to score twice in eight minutes, adding three precious points to qualify first.
Morocco s performance, on the other hand, was a major disappointment, as they lacked their attacking attitude and were bounced back into defense against Egypt and Libya. Despite having shown great resistance in their opening game against the Ivory Coast, it ended with a loss due to a questionable penalty. Inevitably, the sacking of Bado El Zaki, a former coach who had guided them to the final of the tournament two years ago, has had a negative impact on the team. Moreover, they were incabple of infiltrating the opposing defenses in their three games, departing the tournament without a single strike.
Libya, at the bottom of the group, seemed to lack the experience needed to play at the continents highest level of competitio. They also paid the price of exceptionally poor goalkeeping against Egypt, losing easily by three goals.
In Group B, Barcelona s striker Samual Eto brought his renowned scoring force to the Cup, ensuring Cameroon’s place in the quarter-finals at the tope of their group with nine points. Eto, scoring five times, had given the advantage to Cameroon and a berth in quarter-finals after the first two games.
Alongside Cameroon (nicknamed the Lions), the Democratic Republic of Congo emerged as a highly organized side, with their match against Togo in their opening game ending with a two goal victory. The same side, with only 10-men, resisted a free-flowing game against Angola in their second game, and was able keep their net clean. However, against group leaders Cameroon, Congo s defense was unable halt the magic displayed by Nejtab Geremi alongside Samual Eto.
Angola, which managed to equal the number of points with the Democratic Republic of Congo, still managed to make its way out of the tournament; a poor level of goalkeeping allowed five goals in three games.
Togo, a side that impressed during the qualifiers, couldn t find their form during the tournament. Losing after a poor performance against the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Togolese needed at least a draw against Cameroon. Two late Cameroon goals in the second half meant that their hopes of proceeding to the next round, however, were dashed. After guaranteeing an early exit, the team continued their poor display against Angola, as they lost their third game to exit without a single point and having conceded seven goals.
In Group C, Guinea proved convincing by winning all three games with spectacular free-flow football. In their opening game, they put forth a magnificent performance against South Africa and scored twice in the second half. In the following game they had to take over a young Zambian team, which they beat 2-1. But the real test was displayed against the reigning champions Tunisia; both teams shared the top spot with six points, and the match was the deciding factor regarding who would end the first round atop the group. The Tunisians were complacent, keeping seven regular players on the bench, thus allowing Guinea to take advantage and win 3-0.
Tunisia, looking to continue their strong form from the previous African Cup, started their campaign by thrashing Zambia 4-1, with Brazilian-born striker Dos Santos scoring three times. In their second game, Dos Santos scored once again, before Ben Achour finished off the game with a second strike to achieve a comfortable victory at the expense of South Africa. Tunisia s head coach Roger Lumerre paid a heavy price against Guinea, however, with his decision to keep a great deal of his regular rotation benched.
Zambia, in the process of building a new team, was incapable of adequately confronting an experienced Tunisian side or the talented Guinean’s. The real concern, however, surrounds South Africa, which was eliminated following three defeats. The one-time African champions are urged to take serious action. In the so-called group of death, D, three teams battled till the last for qualification. Nigeria, with two great scorers; Nwankwo Kano and Obafemi Martins, were able to finish off the first two games and guarantee early qualification.
Senegal, with a victory over Zimbabwe in their opening game, proved to be lax defensively as they conceded three goals against Ghana and Nigeria. But the West-African side was fortunate enough to make it to the last eight, thanks to a complacent Ghanaian side which surprisingly lost to Zimbabwe, a side that had nothing to lose at the end of the group stage matches following two early defeats.
Alongside complacency, it appeared that Ghana missed Marc Essian, Africa s most valuable player alongside Solai Montari, and thus their exit was inevitable, as they lost to Zimbabwe on the last day of the group stage matches. Zimbabwe performed well in their three games, but against Senegal and Nigeria seemed to lack the striking finish to score.
Among the most significant statistics is the number of goals scored during 24 matches; 54, with an average of two and a quarter goal per game. Group C witnessed the highest number of goals with 16; group A had the least number of goals with 11. As for the most powerful attack, the lions of Cameroon lead the list with seven goals, while the dubious honor of worst defense belongs to Togo, which conceded seven goals. Samual Eto is the top scorer thus with five goals, while Dos Santos of Tunisia is close behind with four.
The quarter-finals promise more exciting action, as Guinea will face Senegal, followed by Egypt taking on the Democratic Republic of Congo. Tunisia, the defending champions, will have to face Nigeria, while four-time winners Cameroon confront the Ivory Coast.
