Lamine Camara scored a stunning brace as Senegal began their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations title with a 3-0 win over Gambia on Monday
Lamine Camara scored a stunning brace as Senegal began their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations title with a 3- 0 palm over Gambia on Monday, but fellow heavyweights Algeria and Cameroon were both held in their opening matches. Sadio Mane’s Senegal are hoping to retain the jewel they won in Cameroon two times agone and were too strong for their Gambian neighbours, who played the whole alternate half with 10 men. Marseille midfielder Pape Gueye swept home an help by Mane to give the Lions of Teranga the lead inside four twinkles in Ivorian capital Yamoussoukro.
Gambia endured a worried figure- up to the event, blacking a training session over an overdue qualification perk before their flight to Ivory Coast was forced to turn around just nine twinkles after take- off due to specialized problems.
Quarter- finalists in 2022, they had Cardiff midfielder Ebou Adams transferred off for a superstuds- up challenge just before the break.
Senegal effectively killed off the game beforehand in the alternate half when 20- time-old Camara, the African youthful player of the time, drilled a low shot into the far corner.
He also completed the palm with an early contender for thing of the event in the 86th nanosecond, consummately bending a shot into the top corner from just outside the box.
Aliou Cisse‘s Senegal will probably face a tougher assignment in their coming Group C match when they face five- time winners Cameroon.
The Indomitable Lions, titleholders in 2017, had to come from before to draw 1- 1 with 10- man Guinea in the alternate game of the day in Yamoussoukro, with Frank Magri equalising for Cameroon beforehand in the alternate half.
Guinea had taken an early lead through Mohamed Bayo, who was leading their attack in the absence of the injured Serhou Guirassy, the striker enjoying a fine season in Germany with Stuttgart.
Cameroon, with Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana not in the platoon having not arrived in Ivory Coast until just before the match, were given a boost as Guinea’s Francois Kamano was transferred off with half- time approaching.
Magri headed them position, but they couldn’t find a winner in the enervating late autumn heat.
Algeria, who won the title in 2019, came the rearmost major nation to fail to win their opening game after Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt and Ghana, as they were held to a 1- 1 stalemate by Angola in Bouake.
Baghdad Bounedjah gave Algeria the lead after 18 twinkles in Ivory Coast’s alternate megacity, and the striker also had a stunning alternate thing disallowed for a tight offside call soon after.
Angola equalised through a Mabululu penalty interior through the alternate half in the Group D game, although they’ve now failed to win any of their last nine matches at the Cup of Nations, stretching back to 2012.
Burkina Faso and Mauritania meet in the same group on Tuesday, also in Bouake.
Monday’s matches were played out before swathes of empty seats, which has snappily come a source of embarrassment for event organisers.
Ivorian Prime Minister Robert Beugre Mambe on Monday said measures would be taken to try to insure full colosseums.
“You’ll see the results in the coming 48 hours,” he said, in response to review after smaller than 37,000 suckers attended Saturday’s opening game between the hosts and Guinea- Bissau at the 60,000- seat Ebimpe Olympic Stadium.
The game had been declared a sell- eschewal, with numerous Ivorians complaining that certain people had bought tickets in bulk over the internet and hadn’t managed to also vend them on.
“Multitudinous sympathizers expressed their enterprises about the fact the colosseum wasn’t completely full,” conceded the Confederation of African Football and the original organising commission in a common statement.
Tuesday will see the opening games in Group E, with Tunisia meeting Namibia and Mali taking on South Africa in Korhogo. Know More Latest Football News…
