African Cup of Nations - Ghana-2008

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Egypt 4 - Cameroon 2


Mohamed Zidan scored a first-half double as holders Egypt thrashed Cameroon 4-2 in their African Nations Cup Group C opener on Tuesday.
The striker netted in the 17th minute and in first half stoppage time as Egypt went 3-0 up at the interval in Kumasi's Baba Yara stadium with Hosni Abd Rabou also scoring twice with a 14th-minute penalty and a powerful shot nine minutes from time.
Samuel Eto'o pulled two back for Cameroon, heading in a cross six minutes into the second half and converting a last-gasp penalty to move one goal shy of Ivorian Laurent Pokou's Nations Cup record of 14.

Sudan 0-3 Zambia

Goals early in each half proved decisive for Zambia as they moved to the top of Group C with a comfortable win over Sudan in Kumasi.
A well-struck shot by James Chamanga put Zambia ahead after three minutes before Sudan wasted several good first-half chances to equalise.
Jacob Mulenga headed in Zambia's second goal early in the second half after Clive Hachilensa hit the crossbar.Felix Katongo wrapped up the victory from close range just before the hour.

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South Africa 1-1 Angola

Manucho scored on his Africa Cup of Nations debut for Angola before Elrio van Heerden's superb late strike salvaged a point for South Africa. Manchester United bound-Manucho netted with a magnificent diving header in the first half after an incisive move. With time running out Angola keeper Lama's wild punch resulted in the ball crossing the line, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.And Van Heerden's deadly strike ensured Angola had no second reprieve. The draw was a fair result, and leaves all four teams in Group D with a point each.

Tunisia 2-2 Senegal

A piledriver from Mejdi Traoui with seven minutes remaining gave Tunisia a point they barely deserved.Tunisia took an early lead with one of their few first-half chances as Issam Jooma scored from an acute angle.But Moustapha Sall punished an error by Rahdi Jaidi to equalise on the stroke of half-time and Diomansy Kamara's close-range effort put Senegal ahead.Then, with Tunisia apparently going nowhere, Traoui cracked the ball into the top-left corner from 25 yards out.Senegal played by far the more positive football, though they did not do enough to rank themselves as leading contenders to win the tournament.

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Benin coach Reinhard Fabisch says he was asked before the Squirrels' Africa Cup of Nations match against Mali if he would help fix the game's outcome. Benin lost the Group B match 1-0 after conceding a penalty at the start of the second half. "He wanted to find out from me if there was any possibility of manipulating the match," Fabisch said of the approach. "I told him: 'Look, you have two minutes to leave the hotel or I will call the police'."

[whatsthepoint]

Guinea 3-2 Morocco


Guinea captain Pascal Feindouno scored twice, only to be sent off as the Syli Nationale held on to beat Morocco. Feindouno's curling free-kick gave Guinea a first-half lead, and on 59 minutes he set up Ismael Bangoura who scored with aleft-footed shot. Seconds later Hicham Aboucherouane's superb strike pulled a goal back for Morocco, before Feindouno's penalty strike took a pulsating game to 3-1. He was then red-carded, with Abdeslem Ouaddou heading in Morocco's second.

Ghana 1-0 Namibia


Ghana proved too strong for Namibia as the tournament hosts moved three points clear at the top of Group A. After Asamoah Gyan shot over the bar with the goal gaping, Junior Agogo bundled in a Quincy Owusu-Abeyie cross from close range on 41 minutes. But Namibia were not disgraced and had Brian Brendell showed a bit more calm on at least three occasions they might have snatched a surprise equaliser. Collin Benjamin also missed chances for Namibia as Ghana closed out the game.

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Ivory Coast 4-1 Benin


Ivory Coast easily beat Benin to assume a firm stranglehold of Group B.
Captain Didier Drogba opened the scoring on 40 minutes when he was put through by Yaya Toure.Toure then converted a cross from brother Kolo Toure four minutes later before Kader Keita pounced on a defensive error on 52 minutes.Aruna Dindane converted the fourth just after the hour while Razak Omatoyossi's injury-time header was Benin's second ever Africa Cup of Nations' goal.

[whatsthepoint]

Nigeria 0-0 Mali

Nigeria's Africa Cup of Nations' fate is in the hands of their Group B rivals after the Super Eagles could only draw with Mali in Sekondi. Berti Vogts' team will have to beat eliminated Benin in their final match on Tuesday, and hope that Mali slip-up. Fredi Kanoute fluffed Mali's best chance in injury time, shooting over in the box after Seydou Keita hit the bar. Nigeria's were restricted to half-chances with John Mikel Obi coming closest with a fizzing shot. Yakubu Aiyegbeni had a goal ruled out for offside after 75 minutes, in a match that was full of tension.

[whatsthepoint]

Sudan players were embroiled in a fracas with an Egyptian TV crew on Friday, just 24 hours before their Group-C clash with Egypt. The incident took place at the Sudanese team hotel in Kumasi when the Egyptian crew claimed Sudanese players refused to grant an interview. Security guards and police were called to calm down the situation but one policeman was reported to draw a gun. No Egyptian players or officials were involved in the incident.

Benin coach Reinhard Fabisch has been given a 24-hour deadline to confirm his allegations about match-fixing at the Africa Cup of Nations. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has asked Fabisch to sign an affidavit by 1200 GMT on Saturday to confirm the claims he made to the BBC. CAF is then expected to launch an investigation into the incident. "I will definitely go all the way to clear this bribery attempt from my point of view," said Fabisch.

Fabisch News Conference

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Egypt 3-0 Sudan


Egypt remained in control of Group C with a comfortable victory over Sudan.The first goal of a rather uninspiring contest was Hosni Abd Rabou's well-taken penalty on 29 minutes.The match was livened up by two late goals from Mohamed Aboutrika, the first from close range, the second a clever strike from a tight angle. Sudan showed strength but were let down by poor finishing and have only a slim mathematical chance of progressing beyond the group stage.


Cameroon 5-1 Zambia


Cameroon punished Zambia's poor defending to bounce back to winning ways and show they are still genuine Africa Cup of Nations contenders.
A Geremi free-kick gave Cameroon the lead, and Joseph Desire Job and Achille Emana added goals before the break, both after defensive errors.
Samuel Eto'o's penalty equalled the Nations Cup goalscoring record.
Shoddy defending gave Job his second and Cameroon their fifth, and Chris Katongo got Zambia's consolation goal.The 14-goal tally of Laurent Pokou of the Ivory Coast has stood for 28 years, but Eto'o will surely surpass it, with Cameroon looking likely to go beyond the group stage.

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Senegal 1 - 3 Angola


Manchester United-bound Manucho scored a brace to help Angola come from behind and take three points against Senegal in Tamale at the Nations Cup.

Tunisia 3 - 1 South Africa


Tunisia moved top of Group D after a brace from Francileudo dos Santos capped an impressive display in Tamale.Dos Santos struck with a diving header early on and then hit the post after 31 minutes, with Chaouki Ben Saada converting the rebound from 10 yards.Two minutes later Dos Santos scored his second, pouncing on a poor back pass by South Africa's Nasief Morris.Steven Pienaar's mazy dribble played in Katlegi Mphela for Bafana Bafana's consolation in the dying minutes.The result means the north Africans top the group on goals scored and a draw in their match against Angola on Thursday would be enough to see both sides progress to the quarter-finals.

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Guinea 1-1 Namibia


Guinea reached the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations for the third time in a row after a tight Group A draw with Namibia in Sekondi.
Souleymane Youla scored Guinea's opener on 62 minutes when he slotted home a through ball from Mamadou Dioulde Bah.Brian Brendell earned Namibia their first point of the tournament when he cut in from the right to finish inside the left-hand post.Guinea's point means they finished second in the group with four points.

Ghana 2 - 0 Morocco

An improved performance from Ghana saw them progress to the quarter-finals as the top team in Group A, with a dismal showing from Morocco.
The two goals came in the first half and were the result of moves involving Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari.Muntari chipped a free-kick over the wall to Essien, who swept the ball in to make it 1-0 after 26 minutes.Essien's pass on the stroke of half-time set up a left-footed Muntari shot for the second and decisive goal.As much as the victory boosted the mood of fans, the Black Stars may have to raise their game further if they are to prevail in the knock-out stage.