Egypt, Cameroon Play Like Favorites

Egypt and Cameroon are one of three African group favorites that came into this qualifying period chasing the lead in their group. With only one bid available per four-term group, that meant the favorites were in near-must-win situations. Tomorrow, we’ll see if Nigeria can perform as well in their match with Tunisia, because Egypt and Cameroon took care of business today, each winning on the road.

The two matches were remarkably similar. Each featured a scoreless first half in which the favorite had the better (but did not control) play. Each featured a goal toward the middle of the second half. Each saw the favorite take control of the match after gaining the lead.

In Gabon, Cameroon posted a 2-0 win over Group A’s leaders thanks to a Achille Emana (Real Betis, Spain) goal in the 67th minute. Two minutes later, the country’s all-time leading scorer (Samuel Eto’o) added an insurance tally in what truly was a must-win match for the Indomitable Lions. Had Cameroon lost, they would no longer control their own destiny and would have to rely on Gabon dropping points on two of their final three matches. Hosting Gabon on Wednesday, Cameroon can now take control of the group.

It was the debut of Cameroon national team coach Paul Le Guen, former boss at Paris St. Germain and Lyon.

In Rwanda, Egypt won 1-0 thanks to a goal from Ahmed Hassan (who was almost immediately replaced right after). The result was not as influential given Rwanda sat third in Group C; rather, the result was obligatory. Egypt needs all points ahead of a November 14 match in Cairo against group leaders Algeria. Today’s result was the big obstacle, as Algeria had drawn 0-0 in Rwanda. With this 1-0 win, Egypt’s chances to qualify go from improbable to probable.