The Sunday News
AFRICA Cup of Nations hosts Equatorial Guinea have to defeat Gabon in their final Group A match at Estadio de Bata tonight if they are to advance to the quarterfinals. Kick-off is at 8pm CATAfter recording 1-1 and 0-0 draws against Congo and Burkina Faso respectively, Nzalang Nacional find themselves in third place in the group on two points. They trail their opponents by one point and leaders Congo by two. A victory will be enough to see Esteban Becker’s side through to the last eight, but anything less will see them exit the tournament after just three matches.
“I am very satisfied, very proud of my team,” said Becker, formerly coach of Equatorial Guinea’s women’s team and who was only appointed to his current position on 7 January.
However, the Argentine must be worried at the prospect of a first-round exit, even though his side is the lowest ranked in the tournament.
Gabon themselves are in a somewhat precarious position. The Panthers opened the tournament with an impressive win over the Burkinabe, but a surprise loss to Congo sees them in danger of being eliminated.
“We had chances in the first half but the luck we had against Burkina Faso we did not have today,” said coach Jorge Costa.
“Congo controlled the game, and when you don’t score and you make mistakes, you lose points.”
A draw will see Gabon end on four points — that will be enough if Congo don’t lose to Burkina Faso in the other Group A match.
However, if Gabon draw and the Burkinabe win, it leaves the Panthers, Red Devils and Stallions all tied on four points at the top of the table. Then it will come down to the head-to-head record between the three teams to determine who advances. Equatorial Guinea and Gabon have met in 10 official international matches. The Panthers boast six wins compared to just one for Nzalang Nacional.
The teams’ most recent encounter was a 2011 friendly in Cannes that saw Gabon claim a 2-0 win. This will be their first meeting in the finals of the Afcon. — SuperSport
