Equatorial Guinea edge Liberia 1-0 in Group E

….As Zambia, Chad play out goalless draw

Equatorial Guinea edged Liberia 1-0 in their TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Group E qualifier, with a 34th minute penalty from Iban Salvador.

The forward converted from the spot after Sampson Dweh fouled him inside the box.

The result moves Equatorial Guinea into second place in the group with four points from three matches, while Liberia remains rooted to the bottom with just one point from their three outings.

Algeria leads the group with a perfect nine points after three matches, and Togo is third with two points.

Despite Liberia pushing for an equalizer in the second half, they were unable to break down the Equatorial Guinean defense.

At the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium, the Group G encounter between Zambia and Chad ended in a goalless stalemate.

Despite dominating possession, the Chipolopolo failed to find the back of the net against a resilient Chad side, who were content to soak up pressure and counterattack when possible.

With this result, Zambia remains second in the group with four points from three matches, behind Cote d’Ivoire who lead with six points and a game in hand.

Chad, with two points, is third, and Sierra Leone is at the bottom with one point.

Zambia came closest to scoring when Francisco Mwepu hit the post in the 84th minute, but Chad’s defence held firm to secure a valuable point away from home.

Similarly, Mozambique and Eswatini played out a 1-1 draw in their Group I qualifier, with both teams scoring in the second half.

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Mozambique took the lead in the 73rd minute through Stanley Ratifo, who slotted home from close range following a well-worked move.

Eswatini equalized just seven minutes later through Thubelihle Mavuso, whose left-footed effort found the top corner.

The result keeps Mozambique at the top of the group with five points from three matches, while Eswatini remain at the bottom with just one point.

Both sides had chances to win the game late on, but neither could capitalize, leaving the group wide open as the teams prepare for their next fixtures.

However, Mali and Guinea Bissau, who each have games in hand, are closely trailing.