Ghana end wait for AFCON qualifying win as Senegal and DR Congo triumph

Ghana ended a three-year wait for a win in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying by beating Somalia 2-0, while Côte d’Ivoire claimed their third consecutive victory with a 2-1 win over Gambia in the third round of qualifying for the 2027 edition.

Jonas Adjetey scored Ghana’s opener in first-half stoppage time, and Felix Afena-Gyan added the second in the 62nd minute after being set up by Mohammed Kudus. Captain Jordan Ayew had missed a penalty in the 13th minute. Ghana moved up to three points in third place, while Somalia remained pointless at the bottom of the group.

Côte d’Ivoire took the lead through Malick Yalcouyé in the 17th minute, and Elye Wahi doubled their advantage seven minutes later, before Musa Barrow pulled one back for Gambia. Côte d’Ivoire maintained their perfect record to top the group on nine points, three points ahead of Gambia.

Senegal beat Sudan 4-1 in Dakar; Nicolas Jackson opened the scoring, and Mohamed Abuagla equalised before half-time, then Boulaye Dia, Ibrahim Mbaye and Pape Mbow scored for Senegal. DR Congo also beat Sierra Leone 3-1 in Kinshasa, with goals from Yoane Wissa, Samuel Moutoussamy and Edo Kayembe, while Samuel Biekwe scored for Sierra Leone.

Other results included Cameroon’s 2-0 win over Namibia, Benin’s 4-1 win over the Central African Republic, Guinea’s 2-1 win over Eritrea, a 1-1 draw between Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, and a goalless draw between Equatorial Guinea and Zimbabwe.