Sudan bounce back to beat DR Congo as Mozambique picks away victory in Benin
Sudan bounced back from their opening day defeat against Mauritania to beat DR Congo 2-1 in Omdurman while Benin suffered back to back losses after going down by a solitary goal at home in the second match-day of the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
In Omdurman, goals in either half from Waleed Bakhet and Mohamed Abdel Rahman gave Sudan a comfortable cushion against Les Leopards, who scored a late consolation through Jonathan Bolingi.
The Sudanese broke the deadlock in the 16th minute after a strong start, Bakhet breaking into the box to slide the ball under the keeper off an assist from Abdel Rahman.
The home side controlled the tempo of the game and had more chances, but could not score as they went to the break a goal up.
In the second half, DR Congo came back stronger and forced the hosts to play on the backfoot. However, their biggest undoing was lack of a killer pass in the final third.
With four minutes left, Sudan killed off the tie off a counter attack. Abdel Rahman broke away through the middle before playing Mozamil Mohamed on the right, the latter cutting back a pass to Rahman for the second goal.
DR Congo pulled one back through Bolingi in the third minute of added time, but the tie was long gone as Hector Cuper’s charges lost a second consecutive match in the qualifiers.
Benin 0-1 Mozambique
Meanwhile in Cotonou, Geny Catamo’s strike in the 38th minute was the difference as Mozambique beat hosts Benin by a solitary goal.
The victory sees Mozambique move to four points and now occupy second spot in Group L, two behind Senegal who have won both their opening matches.
The electric Catamo scored the goal in the 38th minute with a smooth low finish after finishing off a cutback from right back Reinildo Mandava.
In the second half, Benin, pushed by their home fans tried to mount a comeback but Mozambique defended well. Ten minutes after the restart, Mozambique had a chance from a setpiece with Catamo floating an inviting ball inside the box but Stanley Ratifo flushed his heard just wide.
Benin continued to press for an equalizer despite the scare. Junior Olaitan dragged a shot just wide on the hour mark while in the 70th minute, Mozambican defender Junior Zainadine almost scored into his own net as he cut out a cross from Jodel Dossou, but his keeper was well placed to collect.
Despite more concerted efforts, Benin couldn’t get anything to pick a point as they lost their second consecutive match. They had lost their opener 3-1 to group leaders Senegal.