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CAPE TOWN: Fiston Mayele equalised five minutes from fulltime as the Democratic Republic of Congo held hosts Senegal to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup Group ‘B’ qualifier in Diamniadio on Thursday.
Senegal, without injured talisman Sadio Mane, have taken five points from a possible nine in a shaky start to their bid to reach the finals with only the top team in the pool guaranteed a place in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The west African side led through Pape Matar Sarr but dropped more points having also drawn with Togo in November.
Sudan top the standings with seven points as they sprung a surprise with a 2-0 win in Mauritania in Nouakchott following a 15th-minute opener from Saifeldin Bakhit and an own goal by home defender Aly Abeid.
Algeria won their first two qualifiers but were beaten 2-1 at home by Guinea on Thursday in another shock result.
Morlaye Sylla gave Guinea the lead but Algeria equalised following an own goal from Yasser Balde before the visitors hit the front again through Aguibou Camara.
A quick-fire brace from Trezeguet put Mohamed Salah-led Egypt 2-0 up at home to Burkina Faso in Cairo, but they were made to sweat when Lassina Traore pulled one back just before the hour mark.
The Pharaohs held on, however, to maintain their 100% start to the qualifiers as they lead Group ‘A’ by four points after three rounds.
Second-placed Guinea-Bissau were held to a 0-0 home draw by Ethiopia.
Crystal Palace forward Jordan Ayew scored in added time as Ghana came from behind in Group ‘I’ to triumph 2-1 in Mali and rise from fifth to second.
Kamory Doumbia had given the home side the lead, but Ernest Nuamah equalised and Ayew came off the bench to claim all three points.
Libya moved top of Group ‘D’ with a 2-1 home win over Mauritius, with all the goals coming in the first half in Benghazi.
Faisal Al Badri converted a penalty for Libya but they were pegged back when Kevin Bru equalised. Ahmed Ekrawa scored the winner for the hosts five minutes before the break.
Victory lifted the Libyans to seven points, three more than Cameroon and Cape Verde.
Malawi moved within three points of Group ‘H’ pacesetters Tunisia thanks to a 3-1 win over Sao Tome e Principe in Lilongwe.
Tunisia, seeking a third straight appearance at the World Cup finals, have nine points, Namibia seven and Malawi six.
A Group ‘E’ fixture between Congo Brazzaville and Niger was not played, reportedly because of a dispute over where it should take place.
It was originally set for Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo across the Congo river from Brazzaville, because the national stadium in Congo was sub -tandard.
However, the Brazzaville stadium was approved for international football after a last-minute inspection and, when Niger insisted on playing Kinshasa, Congo refused to go there.
Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2024
