Latest Round Up of African World Cup Qualifying

We inch closer and closer to finding out which countries will represent the African continent in the first World Cup on African soil.

This weekend shed some light on which countries will make it - and which won't.

For a complete run down of the group standings, please click here.
The winners of each group earn an automatic place in the 2010 World Cup.

Group A

Surprising Gabon head the group with 6 points, 3 ahead of Togo and 5 ahead of Morocco and Cameroon.

Gabon easily handled 10-man Togo, 3-0 this weekend.

Togo were a goal down after just 11 minutes with Bruno Ecuele scoring and the Hawks were a man down after 40 minutes following the dismissal of Thomas Dossevi.

Roguy Meye and Moise Brou Apanga scored in the second half to complete a comfortable win for Gabon.

In the group's other game, Cameroon could only draw 0-0 against Morocco on Sunday.

Cameroon's Indomitable Lions have failed to score so far in the second phase of qualifying.

The next matches take place in two weeks time when Morocco host Togo and Cameroon travel to Gabon.

Group B

Tunisia defeated Mozambique 2-0 in their Group B encounter.

Lens defender Alaeddine Yahia scored from the penalty spot after 21 minutes.

Oussama Darragi, from Tunisian champions Esperance, was then on target for the Carthage Eagles with their second goal in injury time at the end of the match.

Victor Obinna Nsofor scored a brace as Nigeria beat Kenya 3-0 in Abuja.

Ikechukwu Uche took advantage of a defensive slip to open the scoring for the Super Eagles in only the second minute of the game.

Kenya had several chances to get into the game, but failed to convert any of them.

Obinna Nsofor scored twice in the second half to ensure the Super Eagles wrapped up a comfortable home victory.

Tunisia remain top of the group with six points, Nigeria are second with four.

Mozambique stay in third with a point, Kenya are last and are yet to earn any points.

Tunisia go head-to-head with Nigeria in two weeks time, while Mozambique travel to Kenya.

Group C

Zambia defeated visitors Rwanda 1-0.

The victory takes Zambia to four points, after they drew 1-1 with Egypt in the opening game of the final round of qualifiers.

Rwanda remain on just a single point from their two games.

Algeria shocked their North African rivals and African champions Egypt 3-1 triumph on Sunday.

Karim Matmour opened the scoring for the hosts in the 60th minute.

Goals from Abdelkader Ghezzal and Rafik Djebbour soon followed as the Desert Foxes opened a 3-0 lead over the six-times African champions.

Mohammed Aboutraika clawed one back from the visitors with three minutes to go, but it was too little, too late.

Algeria go top of the table with four points ahead of Zambia.

Egypt lie bottom, below Rwanda, with a solitary point.

The Pharoahs will hope to restore a semblance of hope to their 2010 World Cup campaign when they host Rwanda in two weeks.

Algeria meanwhile travel to Zambia.

Group D

Benin narrowly edged Sudan, 1-0.

In the group's other tie, Ghana secured a 2-0 away victory over Mali.

Kwadwo Asamoah and Matthew Amoah were scorers of the two second half goals.

The Black Stars go back on top of Group D with six points, while Benin lie in second place with three points.

Sudan and Mali have one point each.

Next up for group leaders Ghana is a trip to Sudan, while Mali host Benin.

Group E

Burkina Faso kept their perfect record in this round of qualifying with a 1-0 over hosts Malawi.

Moumouni Dagano, who plays in Qatar, grabbed the only goal of the game in the 70th minute with a well-taken close-range volley past goalkeeper Swadik Sanudi.

It was Dagano's 10th goal in the World Cup campaign so far making him the top scorer in Africa for the 2010 qualifiers.

Ivory Coast also made it two wins out of two when they beat Guinea 2-1.

Bakary Kone opened the scoring for the Elephants on the stroke of half time.

Sambegou Bangoura struck an equalizer for the home side halfway through the second half.

But Romaric scored what proved to be the winner seven minutes later and Ivory Coast top Group E with six points on goal difference.

Burkina Faso lie in second and the group's top two teams will face each other in Ouagadougou in two weeks.

Guinea and Malawi prop up the group.

Both are yet to win a point.

That could change when Malawi travels to Conakry for the next round of matches.

MY POV: Should be a fun weekend of action in two weeks. We'll know a lot more after that round of action.

A Slew of African Friendlies

Tomorrow is World Cup qualifying for some of the world (USA-Mexico and some Asian Cup qualifying).

For Africa, it's all about getting ready for March's final Cup qualifiers.

With that in mind, the BBC's Durosimi Thomas looks ahead at the African friendly matches taking place on Wednesday ...

Nigeria play Jamaica in London.
Tunisia squares off against the always-tough Holland.
Reigning African champions Egypt play Ghana in Cairo.
South Africa plays Chile in Polokwane and Turkey takes on the Ivory Coast in Izmir.

Following is the Nigeria-Jamaica preview. Please click the link for a full preview.

This game is certain to attract a big crowd, given the large Jamaican and Nigerian communities living in London.

The John Barnes-coached Reggae Boyz are way below the Super Eagles in the world rankings, and Nigeria coach Shaibu Amodu has named a strong squad.

Chelsea's Jon Obi Mikel, Joseph Yobo of Everton and Portsmouth's Nwankwo Kanu are set to turn out.

Amodu has stressed he sees the game as a crucial part of his preparations for the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, which begin in March.

CS Sfaxien Win Confederations Cup

Al Ahly have an opponent in next February's African Super Cup.

They're Tunisian side CS Sfaxien, who became the first club to win the Confederation Cup twice after forcing a 2-2 draw at Etoile du Sahel in the second leg of an all-Tunisia final on Saturday.

The first leg two weeks ago ended goalless and Etoile were expected to use home advantage and add to eight continental trophies won in 13 years.

But Sfaxien got off to a dream start with Ghana-born striker Agyemang Opoku scoring after just two minutes at the Olympic Stadium to claim his fourth goal this year in the African equivalent of the European UEFA Cup.

It took Etoile until 12 minutes into the second half to level through another West African striker, Nigerian Emeka Opara, but had to score again under the away-goal rule.

However, Sfaxien regained the lead on 74 minutes via their midfielder and leading scorer Abdelkrim Nafti only for Aymen Abdennour to trigger a thrilling climax with an equaliser soon after.

A third goal eluded Etoile, though, and Sfaxien collected the 330,000-dollar first prize plus a showdown with mighty Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo next February for the African Super Cup.

Congrats and good luck against Ahly ... you'll need it!!

African Squads in Midweek Friendlies

Much of the world played World Cup qualifying last night.

Others played friendlies in preparation for the 2010 World Cup.

Africa was no exception as the continent prepares itself for the much-anticipated 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

First up, African champions Egypt were beaten 2-0 by the world's top ranked side, Argentina.

A full strength Egypt side, including controversial keeper Essam El Hadary, conceded two goals in the last 20 minutes to go down to the South American giants.

But in Pretoria, the upcoming World Cup hosts, South Africa, secured a deserved 3-0 victory over their own South American opposition, Paraguay.

In the process, striker Benni McCarthy became his country's top international goalscorer.

In other matches, Ghana lost to Mexico 2-1.

Ghana took the lead in this game, held at Fulham's Craven Cottage ground in London, but they were not able to hold on to it.

After a goalless first half, Michael Essien gave the Black Stars the lead with a driving shot from outside the area, which went in off the post.

But Mexico equalised in simple fashion, when Ghana's substitute goalkeeper, Patrick Antwi, slipped as he prepared to deal with a back pass.

Carlos Salcido punished his mistake.

Four minutes from time, Ghana captain John Mensah hauled down Adolfo Bautista in the box and Mexico's Pavel Pardo stepped up to convert the penalty and give his side the win.

Also, Morocco bounced back from their dreadful Cup of Nations campaign with a 4-1 win over Belgium.

It was a first win for stand-in coach Fathi Jamal, who took over after the departure of Henri Michel.

"After our dramatic exit in the Africa Cup, this really feels great. It has been a long time since we played like this," Morocco playmaker Mbark Boussoufa said.

Tunisia met Ivory Coast in France, and came away with a 2-0 win.

Goals from Tijani Belaid and Radhouane Felhi gave Roger Lemerre's side victory, although the coach is soon to leave his post.

Liberia scored a surprise 2-0 win over Sudan in Khartoum, in their first game under new coach Antoine Hey.

The first result of the day was a 1-1 draw between Uganda and Libya in Kampala.

Caesar Okhuti put the Cranes ahead in the 48th minute, with the equalizer coming in the 90th minute from Younes Shidani.

DR Congo and Algeria were in France for another match taking place near Paris.

Dieumerci Mbokani put the Simbas ahead in the 35th minute, but a late penalty converted by Kamel Ghiles meant the game ended 1-1.

Tanzania's game against Mozambique was canceled due to heavy rains at the old national stadium in Dar es Salaam.

Mozambique turned down a proposal to have the match played on Thursday.

Elsewhere, Zimbabwe beat Botswana 1-0 in Gaborone, with the goal scored by Cuthbert Malajila.

Cup of Nations is Around the Corner

The venues are being scrubbed clean, the tickets are printed and the cities are bubbling with anticipation.

The African Cup of Nations is but a mere 2 weeks and 2 days away from taking over the minds and hearts of football fans around the globe.

Cup finalists begin their pre-tournament preparations in earnest this weekend, led by defending champions Egypt who host Namibia in a friendly.

Saturday's match in Aswan is the first of three warm-up matches for the Pharaohs, still sweating on the availability of star striker Mido.

The Middlesbrough forward has a knee injury and is unsure of his fitness for the tournament, which starts January 20.

Namibia play their first match under Dutch coach Arie Schans, who has had less than a month to work with the team. His predecessor, the Zambian Ben Bamchuile died at the end of last month, casting a shadow over Namibia's preparations.

All but two of the 16 finalists will play warm-up internationals over the next three weeks before the tournament kick off.

Cameroon had planned a match against Kenya in Nairobi but the post-election violence in the east African country have seen the Indomitable Lions switch their preparations to Burkina Faso. To date, they have no matches planned and will not have played an international since their last qualifier in September.

Guinea play no warm-up internationals but will get match practice against club opposition in Marbella, Spain, where they will begin preparations next week. Among their planned opponents are Fiorentina and Borussia Dortmund. Heady competition, no?

Nigeria and Sudan are training in Malaga while Benin have gone to Brazil for a 10-day camp before heading to Burkina Faso for a warm-up match against Senegal on Jan. 17.

Angola have been in Portugal since before Christmas for their preparations.
Tunisia host Zambia at Rades on Sunday before a flurry of fixtures next week, which sees matches in Abu Dhabi, Spain, Portugal, Morocco and South Africa.

Under FIFA rules for continental championships, clubs must release their players for preparations a full two weeks before the start of the tournament, setting Sunday as the deadline for squad members to join up.

But there are likely to be some exceptions, notably Ghana's Michael Essien who officials said would likely be allowed to play for Chelsea against Tottenham Hotspur on Jan.14. Also, Samuel Eto'o will stay with Barcelona until mid-week next week, playing in a Kings Cup match before meeting up with his Cameroon teammates.

It's almost here, people. I'm excited!!

Etoile Through to World Club Cup Semis

Congratulations are in order for Tunisia's Etoile du Sahel, who secured a place in the semi finals of the World Club Cup, thanks to a 1-0 victory over Pachuca of Mexico in Japan.

Young Ghanian striker Moussa Narry scored the only goal of the game in the 85th minute.
His shot from distance was deflected into the net by Pachuca defender Leobardo Lopez.

Etoile will now face Argentinian powerhouse Boca Juniors in the semis.

It means they have already matched the achievement of their great rivals Al Ahly, in getting to the semi finals of the event.

Etoile beat Ahly in the final of the African Champions League to secure their place at the Fifa showpiece.

"I am very happy with the way the match turned out and very happy with my players," said Etoile coach Bertrand Marchand.

"We have a lot of young players under 25 and Pachuca had more experienced players, but we knew with a strong defense and teamwork we could do it."

Until the decisive moment, it had been Pachuca who looked more likely to claim victory.

Etoile goalkeeper Aymen Balbouli frustrated the CONCACAF champions throughout and produced some fine saves to stop Gabriel Caballero's diving header and Marvin Cabrera's fierce shot in the first half.

Pachuca's Julio Manzur had a goal disallowed for offside after Balbouli fumbled a free kick from Christian Gimenez.

"We played a very good match, we were dominating the game, producing a lot of chances but were unable to score," said Pachuca coach Enrique Meza.

Good luck, Etoile! We're proud of you.

Etoile du Sahel are African Champions!

Congratulations to Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia, who minutes ago wrapped up their first ever African Champions League title, defeating two-time defending champion Al Ahly of Egypt 3-1 on aggregate!

Etoile scored three times in Cairo, becoming the first team to score in the Egyptian capital in this Champions League campaign.

Etoile took full advantage of a red card issued to Ahly defender Al Hass midway through the second half. Etoile will represent Africa in the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan next month.

Disappointment will be high at Ahly, who would have won their record third consecutive Champions League title with a victory.

Congratulations to the new champions of Africa: Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia!!

African Champions League Final

The African Champions League Final is upon us!

The first leg of the biggest continental competition in Africa takes place this Saturday, with Tunisia's Etoile du Sahel challenging defending champions Al Ahly of Egypt.

Let the battle begin!

Etoile coach Bertrand Marchand called Ahly a 'lucky' team ahead of Saturday's clash.

The two sides meet in Sousse and the Tunisians are keen to avenge defeat in the 2005 final, which Ahly won on a 3-0 aggregate.

"Ahly depend too much on luck and experience and will need more than that when facing us," Marchand said.

"The key Ahly players are midfielder Mohamed Aboutraika and striker Emad Moteab and if we stop them, they will be easily contained and we can definitely claim the trophy."

Marchand considers Al-Hilal, the Sudanese club Etoile defeated 4-3 in a two-leg semi-final thriller, a much better team than the Egyptians, who relied on an own goal to edge Al-Ittihad of Libya at the same stage.

"I watched Ahly against Ittihad and they suffered to succeed. Hilal are much better than the Egyptians," he revealed. Talk about fanning the flames ...

Aware that Etoile flopped against Ahly two years ago using overly cautious tactics home and away, Marchand vowed to unleash a three-man strike force against their opponents, who are chasing a record third consecutive Champions League title.

His likely choices are Tunisian Amine Chermiti, leading Etoile scorer in the competition this year with seven goals, three-goal Cape Verdian Gilson 'Ja' Silva and Ghanaian mid-year signing Sadat Bukari.

All are young, quick and slick, and capable of troubling an Ahly defense long on experience but short on pace when brutally exposed 3-0 away to Hilal in the mini-league phase.

"Winning the African Champions League would be a dream," Chermiti said.

"We have a solid squad and wonderful supporters and I cannot accept failure again after losing two of the previous three finals."

Etoile were pipped on penalties by Enyimba of Nigeria in the 2004 decider.

The club from the Mediterranean resort of Sousse have won every Confederation of African Football (CAF) competition except the Champions League.

They also want to end a losing streak by Tunisia in the showcase of African club football as CS Sfaxien had victory snatched from their grasp last year when Aboutraika struck a stoppage-time winner in Tunis.

Good luck to both squads and may the best team win!

Al Ahly-Etoile in African Final

Congratulations to Al Ahly of Egypt and Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia, who both advanced to the African Champions League final this weekend.

Etoile were the first to advance on Saturday, 3-1 over Sudan's Al Hilal.

The Sudanese won the first leg in Omdurman 2-1, meaning Etoile needed only a 1-0 home victory on Saturday to go through, thanks to their away goal.

Amine Chermiti put the Tunisians on the road to the final with the first of two headers after 13 minutes.

And the score remained 1-0 throughout the rest of the first half.

Early in the second half, though, there was a flurry of goals.

Saber Ben Frej got the better of a goal mouth scramble to put Etoile 2-0 up on the night.

But three minutes later, Hilal's Nigerian striker Ndubuisi Ezei got one back for the visitors, to make it 2-1 in Sousse, and level at 3-all on aggregate.

It was his eighth goal of the Champions League campaign.

The prospect of extra time loomed.

Not for long though, as Chermiti struck his second of the night on 63 minutes to take Etoile 3-1 ahead on the night, up 4-3 on aggregate.

But Hilal only needed to level the match with a second away goal to go through, and as the clock ran down they pressed and pressed.

A sequence of free kicks from just outside the Etoile area peppered the home side's goal.

But the Tunisians held on and they go through to their fifth consecutive continental final, and their third Champions League final in four years.

Over to Al Ahly, who edged past Al Ittihad 1-0 in Cairo on Sunday to reach the final.

The Egyptian club will now be looking to win their third consecutive title after they qualified for the final 1-0 on aggregate, after the two sides drew 0-0 in Libya two weeks ago.

The only goal of the game came after 20 minutes when Hilal's Hesham Shaban headed into his own net as he tried to clear a cross from Angola's Gilberto.

The final is a repeat of 2005 final that Ahly eventually won 3-0 on aggregate.

The first leg of the final will be played in Sousse in Tunisia on the weekend of October 26-28 and the second leg two weeks later in Cairo.

Good luck to both squads!

African Confederation Cup Semi-Finals

The African Champions League isn't the only game in town this weekend.

The African Confederations Cup gets ready to crown two finalists for their grand championship game this weekend, as well.

CS Sfaxien of Tunisia and El Merreikh of Sudan could clinch places in the big games this weekend.

In Group A, Sfaxien must beat Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa in Pretoria to be certain of making the final.

Any other result would open the door for TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo, provided they improve their away record and defeat Astres Douala in Cameroon.
Sfaxien enter the final-round group fixtures Saturday with a one-point advantage over twice African Champions winners Mazembe and a better head-to-head record.

Even though they're out of it, Sundowns will not lack incentive having suffered a humiliating four-goal loss in the Mediterranean town of Sfax not too long ago.

"We owe it to ourselves and to South Africa to avenge that embarrassing loss," vowed coach Gordon Igesund

Mazembe, the most successful Congolese club in Africa with three titles, will pin their hopes of success in the Atlantic city of Douala on national team striker Mputu Mabi, the leading Confederation Cup scorer with eight goals.

In Group B former Cup Winners Cup title holders Merreikh have a much simpler task than Sfaxien to qualify for the final as they need only avoid losing 5-0 away to Dolphin of Nigeria Sunday.

Merreikh, coached by German Otto Pfister, are three points clear of Dolphin and have a huge head-to-head advantage having triumphed 6-1 against the west Africans in Omdurman.

Pfister has no doubt his multi-national mix of stars are heading for the two-leg final in November.

"Merreikh and neighbors Al Hilal are the biggest organised football clubs in black Africa," he said.

"They have good infrastructure and organisation plus passionate supporters."

Ismaili of Egypt, who fired coach Taha Basri this week after a 4-4 draw with lowly Al Ittihad in the national championship, host Kwara United of Nigeria in the other fixture.

Thanks to the BBC for the info in this article. What would I do without you?

African Champions League Semifinals

It's here. The biggest continental competition in Africa celebrates its semifinals round, one more game to go before the grand final.

Saturday's African Champions League semifinal between Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia and Sudan's Al Hilal will produce a landmark result - whatever the outcome.

If Etoile can overcome their 2-1 deficit from the first leg in Omdurman, they will be in their fifth consecutive continental final. They won last year's Confederation Cup and they were beaten finalists in the Champions League in 2004 and 2005. In 2003 they took the now defunct African Cup Winners Cup.

If Hilal win, they would cap a remarkable year for Sudanese football.

The national side has reached the Nations Cup finals for the first time in three decades, and Hilal's club rivals Al Merreikh have all but secured a place in the final of the Confederation Cup.

Etoile feel good going in. They scored an away goal in Sudan. A 1-0 victory at home sends them to the Final.

"The first leg puts all the pressure on the Sudanese," striker Gilson Silva told BBC Fast Track on Thursday.

"They will be compelled to score at least once, as we did ourselves."

"They know that staying in defense will be catastrophic for them."

Etoile had a disappointing build-up to the game, with a 1-1 draw by US Monastir in the Tunisian league last week, but they are boosted by the return of defenders Mehdi Merieh and Saber Fradj.

The pair missed the first leg because of injury.

Hilal have amassed an impressive array of wins over the course of this Champions League campaign.

They have thrown off ASEC Mimosas of Ivory Coast, Esperance of Tunisia and Zamalek of Egypt, among others. Not too shabby.

Also, they will welcome back their key midfielder Rtshard Justin Lado for the game. Sounds like an enticing contest.

Over in the other semi-final, defending champions Al Ahly need a goal to get through on Sunday.

After squeezing out a 0-0 result in Tripoli a fortnight ago against surprise semifinalists Al Ittihad of Libya, the champions will look for the death blow away.

The 'Red Devils' will be highly dissappointed should they underrate the Libyans, who have been in superb form in their maiden campaign at this stage of the competition.

The aggregated winners advance to a two-legged Champions League final.

The first leg will be played in either Sudan or Tunisia on the weekend of October 26-28th with the return match in Egypt or Libya on the weekend of November 9-11.

I hope I can watch them here in the States.

Al Hilal Start African CL Semis With 2-1 Win

A quick update on the African Champions League first leg semifinal between Al Hilal of Sudan and Tunisia's Etoile Sahel from our friends at Reuters.

Nigerian pair Ndubuisi Eze and Kelechi Osunwa handed Al Hilal of Sudan a 2-1 home win over Tunisia's Etoile Sahel in their African Champions League semi-final first leg on Friday.

Eze struck his seventh goal of the competition in the 61st minute before the unmarked Osunwa headed in a cross from Al Hilal's third Nigerian import, Yusuf Mohamed, five minutes later.

Etoile, trying to reach their fifth African club competition final in as many years, had taken a first-half lead after a poor clearance from Hamuda Bashir allowed defender Radhouene Felhi to score from close range.

A 1-0 win in the return leg next month would take Etoile through on away goals.

On Sunday, Al Ittihad of Libya host holders Al Ahli of Egypt in their semi-final first leg.

Al Ahly Scrapes Towards History

The biggest club competition in African football continues this weekend with the first legs of the semifinals of the African Champions League.

First off, Al Ittihad of Libya take on defending champions Al Ahly from neighboring Egypt in Tripoli on Sunday. The Libyans have already upset the script by reaching the final four in their first year of participation in the group phase since the format of Africa's top club competition was changed 11 years ago.

Al Ahly are seeking to set new standards for the continent's annual club competitions.

No club has won the Champions League three times in a row.

Ahly are chasing the distinction this year and, at the same time, hoping to win Africa's top club title for a record-breaking sixth time.

The Egyptians have had a tough week of preparation with a derby match against arch rivals Zamalek on Monday, which they won with a first-half goal from Mohamed Aboutrika.

The other semi-final sees Al Hilal of Sudan vs. Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia.

The semi-final second legs will be played on the weekend of October 5th.

Africans Excel in Europe, Led by Adebayor

African players showed talent and agility this weekend on the world stage, scoring epic goals and stunning volleys around the European leagues.

The most memorable goal of the weekend goes to Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor. His strike capped a 3-1 victory for Arsenal in their north London derby clash at Tottenham Hotspur, his unstoppable volley whizzing past England goalkeeper Paul Robinson. He had earlier scored with a header to make it 1-1. To see the goal, click
here!

In other English top flight matches, Portsmouth's all-Nigerian strike-force of Nwankwo Kanu and John Utaka caused Liverpool's defense problems throughout their match at Fratton Park but Kanu missed a first half penalty.

In the English league's second division, former Nigerian captain Jay-Jay Okocha made an impressive debut for Hull City in their 1-1 draw at home to Stoke. The 34-year-old former Bolton player has returned to England after a season playing in the Middle East with Qatar SC.

In Spain, Mali forward Frederic Kanoute scored two goals on Sunday as Sevilla notched a 4-1 win over Recreativo Huelva.

Cameroonian midfielder Daniel Ngom Kome scored for Valladolid in their 2-1 loss at Valencia, his first goal for over a season cancelled out by Fernando Morientes' equalizer and David Silva's late deflected winner. (For more on this and Valencia, check out my Valencia blog!

Nigerian Kalu Uche of Almeria scored once and had a goal wrongly disallowed as his newly promoted side lost 3-1 at Real Madrid.

In the French Ligue 1, Ivorian star striker Aruna Dindane scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot as his Racing Lens team beat AS Nancy 1-0 at home.

In Lille, Moroccan striker Marouane Chamakh was sent off in his Bordeaux team drew 1-1 on the road.

In the German Bundesliga, Tunisian defender Karim Huggui scored the opening goal for Bayer Leverkusen as they won 2-0 at home against VfL Bochum.

Africans in the English Premiership

The world's most popular league gets back into gear tomorrow when The English Premiership starts play with matches around the country. The likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal begin their quest for the championship of England and glory in Europe.

As you know, many of the best African footballers ply their trade in England. We all know about Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Kolo Toure. How about some of the other rising stars of African football?

Graeme Jackson of the fine African football website MTN Football presents an in-depth look at the best African footballers in the Premiership this season. Let's see what he has to say about some of the African players not named Drogba or Toure. It's a lengthy list, so only a few players are listed here. To read Jackson's full article, please click here!


ARSENAL

Emmanuel Adebayor

Nationality: Togo
Born: 26/02/1984
Position: Forward
Squad No: 25

With Thierry Henry having departed for Barcelona, Emmanuel Adebayor will be expected to establish himself as one of Arsenal’s leading forwards. He will have tough competition, though, with new signing Eduardo Da Silva and the prodigiously talented Robin van Persie standing in his way. But the Togo international has enough skill to be as big a hit in North London as his childhood hero Nwankwo Kanu was.

BIRMINGHAM CITY

Medhi Nafti

Nationality: Tunisia
Born: 28/11/1978
Position: Midfielder
Squad No: 12

A MTN Africa Cup of Nations winner from 2004, Medhi Nafti played a prominent role in helping Birmingham gain promotion from the Championship. The combative midfielder’s game is well suited to the hurly-burly action of the Premiership and he will be an important player as the Blues look to consolidate their place in the top flight.

BLACKBURN ROVERS

Aaron Mokoena

Nationality: South Africa
Born: 25/11/1980
Position: Defender/Midfielder
Squad No: 15



The aggressive and committed Aaron Mokoena (right) is equally comfortable in the heart of defence or as a defensive midfielder, where he has played most of his football for Rovers. The former Ajax Amsterdam hard-man’s versatility and strength make him a prefect fit for the English game and, as Arjen Robben (who had his ankle broken by Mokoena in a rough tackle two years ago) will tell you, he takes no prisoners.

BOLTON WANDERERS

Abdoulaye Meite

Nationality: Cote d’Ivoire
Born: 06/10/1980
Position: Defender
Squad No: 5

Voted the club’s best newcomer at the end of last season after making more than 40 appearances in his debut season at Bolton, Cote d’Ivoire international defender Abdoulaye Meite is now a leading player at the Reebok Stadium. His experience, both at international level and with Marseille in Europe, will be important for a Bolton team who will balance the Premiership and UEFA Cup commitments.

EVERTON

Joseph Yobo

Nationality: Nigeria
Born: 06/09/1980
Position: Defender
Squad No: 4

Nigerian defender Joseph Yobo has become the foundation upon which coach David Moyes has built an effective and efficient Toffees team. Everton’s Young Player of the Year for 2003/04 has grown into a defender of rare vision and skill, all while retaining his characteristic strength and speed. This season he will hope to further enhance his reputation as one of England’s best defenders.

LIVERPOOL

Mohamed Sissoko

Nationality: Mali
Born: 22/01/1985
Position: Midfield
Squad No: 22

Mali international Momo Sissoko was a favourite of Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez from his spell with Valencia and the Spaniard’s faith in the midfielder has been rewarded since signing him for the Reds in mid-2005. The hard-working, no no-nonsense Sissoko has been a reliable option in the middle of the park, but he faces stiff competition from Argentinean Javier Mascherano for the anchor role.

READING

Ibrahim Sonko

Nationality: Senegal
Born: 22/01/1981
Position: Defender
Squad No: 5

Ibrahima Sonko has yet to officially commit his international future to Senegal, having played in nothing more than an unofficial friendly for the country, but it seems he will become a fully fledged international for the West African country in the not too distant future. The defender enjoyed a solid 2006/07 season, as did most of Reading’s players, and he will hope to continue his good form this campaign.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Benoît Assou-Ekotto

Nationality: Cameroon
Born: 24/03/1984
Position: Defender
Squad No: 32

Young Cameroonian left back Benoît Assou-Ekotto (left) joined Spurs in June 2006 from Lens. He made 24 appearances last season and looked a promising prospect before injury cut his campaign short. He will hope to build on his strong showings and establish himself this year.

Confederations Cup Round-up

The African Champions League took place this week but we're going to focus instead on the 'little brother' of African continental competitions, the Confederations Cup.

Here's a quick re-cap of this weekend's African Confederations Cup action, thanks to our friends at the BBC.

A Nigerian club coach had to be rescued by police and another quit on a disastrous weekend for the country in the Confederation Cup.

Police smuggled Kwara United coach Kafaru Alabi away from the Township Stadium in the central town of Ilorin as supporters vented their anger at a 1-1 Group B draw with Ismailia of Egypt.

Dolphin were humiliated 6-1 in the same pool away to Al-Merreikh of Sudan, prompting coach Ifeanyi Onyedika to resign while travelling to the team hotel in Khartoum.

CS Sfaxien of Tunisia appear the team to beat in Group A after whipping Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa 4-0 with Ivorian striker Blaise Kouassi scoring twice.

And the deadliest finisher in African club football, Mbuti Mapi from TP Mazembe of the DR Congo, raised his goal tally to 15 by scoring twice in a 2-1 home win over Astres Douala of Cameroon.

Merreikh lead Group B with four points followed by Dolphin (three), Ismailia (two) and Kwara (one) while it is even closer in Group A with Sfaxien (four) just ahead of Mazembe and Sundowns (three each) and Astres have one.

Group winners after the six-round mini-leagues advance to the final and early form suggests Merreikh and Sfaxien could contest the US$300,000 first prize over two legs in November.

Edward Weng gave Kwara a first-half lead only for Mohamed Fadl to level 15 minutes from full-time and although the visitors lacked sacked French coach Patrice Neveu they came close to securing maximum points in a frenetic finish.

When the final whistle sounded police raced to protect Alabi and took him away in a heavily guarded truck as Ilorin once again witnessed the ugly side of African football.

Kwara defeated Mouloudia Alger of Algeria and Union Douala of Cameroon in ill-tempered qualifiers at the Township Stadium with match officials attacked by visiting players.

Former Dolphin stars Endurance Idahor and Efosa Eguakun sparkled as a multi-national Merreikh team guided by Togo 2006 World Cup coach Otto Pfister ran riot in the second half to score three times within five minutes.

After cutting the deficit to 2-1 via a Victor Ezeji header two minutes after half-time, Dolphin had leading scorer Bola Bello sent off for elbowing an opponent.

Merreikh captain and Sudan international Faisal Ajab led the goal charge with two and Mujahid Mohamed, Musa al-Tayeb, Idahor and Mohamed Ali were also on target.

Sundowns did not know what hit them in the Mediterranean city of Sfax with Kouassi scoring after 90 seconds and Blaise Mbele from the DR of Congo adding a second in the eighth minute.

Kouassi took advantage of slack marking to head a third Sfaxien goal with 29 minutes gone and second-half pressure Sundowns was thwarted by goalkeeper Lotfi Saidi before Naby Soumah added the fourth in stoppage time.

Mabi gave Mazembe a first-minute lead in Kinshasa, Amia Ekanga levelled midway thorugh the first half and the prolific Congolese scorer hit the 61st-minute winner.