We now know of 17 of the 24 teams that will play the next African Cup of Nations football (CAN 2021) in January / February 2022 in Cameroon. The Nigerians won their qualifiers for CAN 2021, at the end of the penultimate day of the qualifiers.
Qualifiers for the next African Cup of Nations (CAN 2021) ends 28, 29 and 30 March 2021 but we already know that two thirds of the law qualified for this “CAN 2021” [1]. Twelve new teams really won their qualifiers on the penultimate day, which took place from March 23 to 27.
THEY START ON THE CAN
The Comoros will play the first African Cup in its history. The Comoros will surely end up in the top two in Group G, as will Egypt. Coelacanths drew 0-0 against Togo which made them happy and eliminated the Togolese.
The Gambia, she beat Angola 1-0 and benefited from a clear 3-0 success for Gabon against DR Congo, in Group D. A historic qualification that confirms the progress of Gambian football, its under 18s. 20 years old who finished third in the last CAN U20.
THEY ARE BACK
The Gabon will return to the final phase, after missing CAN 2019 in Egypt. The Gabonese qualified with the method by throwing a selection of DRC that remained on four participants in a row.
The Equatorial Guinea will also have its team in neighboring Cameroon. The Equatorial Guineans, who played CAN 2012 and 2015 at home, have won their place in this competition on the field for the first time. A 1-0 success against Tanzania in Group J was enough.
The Burkina Faso has for his part undoubtedly shown that his absence from the last continental meeting was an accident. Burkinabè, 2nd 2013 and 3rd 2017, did the most with 0-0 in Uganda, on March 24, in Group B.
THEY CONFIRM
The Guinea will play its second African Cup in a row, which had not happened since its three consecutive quarter-finals between 2004 and 2008. The Guineans beat Mali 1-0, who had already qualified since November 2020, in the AT group.
The Nigeria also achieves its first “double” in almost a decade, incredible as it may seem to a nation that has won the tournament three times (1980, 1994, 2013). The Nigerians meanwhile deprived Benin of the qualifier by winning 1-0 in Porto-Novo.
The Morocco This will be its third final phase in a row, after CAN 2017 and 2019. A weak 0-0 in Mauritania made the Moroccans’ activities in Group E.
The Zimbabwe does not develop at the same level as Morocco and Nigeria. Still, the Zimbabweans are in their third qualifier in a row. They go to Cameroon, like the Algerians, after a 1-0 victory in Botswana, in Group H.
THEY ARE FAITHFUL TO THE APPOINTMENT
TheEgypt, the most successful nation on the continent (seven crowns), also improves its record for participation in the final, with a 25th in 33 editions. The Egyptians made it 1-1 in Kenya in Group G.
The Ivory Coast continues to follow Egypt as it will participate in its 24th CAN. A 3-0 success in Niger in Group K and here is Didier Drogba’s country on Samuel Eto’o’s country.
The Ghana completes this podium of the most diligent teams in the African Cup of Nations as it becomes his 23rd time. The Ghanaians have secured the right to be present for nine months, thanks to 1-1 in South Africa, in Group C.
SEVEN more places to take
Five elections already had their tickets before the 5th day: Cameroon (host country),Algeria (title holder), the Senegal (CAN 2019 finalist), Mali and that Tunisia. There are therefore seven places to take in the final phase of CAN 2021. The final qualifiers will be known on March 30, at the end of the last day of these qualifiers.
They can still qualify
Uganda and Malawi (Group B), South Africa and Sudan (Group C), Mauritania, Burundi and Central Africa (Group E), Cape Verde, Rwanda and Mozambique (Group F), Congo and Guinea-Bissau (Group I), Ethiopia and Madagascar (Group K), Benin and Sierra Leone (Group L).
CAN 2021: END OF QUALIFICATION PROGRAM
* The timetables are in universal time
Sunday 28 March 2021 –
13.00: Namibia – Guinea, in Windhoek [groupe A]13.00: Tanzania – Libya, in Dar Es Salaam [groupe J]13.00: Tunisia – Equatorial Guinea, in Tunis [groupe J]16:00: Sudan – South Africa, in Omdurman [groupe C]16:00: Ghana – Sao Tome and Principe, Cape Coast [groupe C]
Monday 29 March 2021 –
16:00: Malawi – Uganda, in Blantyre [groupe B]16:00: Burkina Faso – South Sudan, in Ouagadougou [groupe B]16:00: Angola – Gabon, in Luanda [groupe D]16:00: DR Congo – Gambia, in Kinshasa [groupe D]16:00: Togo – Kenya, in Lomé [groupe G]16:00: Egypt – Comoros, Cairo [groupe G]19.00: Zimbabwe – Zambia, in Harare [groupe H]19.00: Algeria – Botswana, in Blida [groupe H]
Tuesday 30 March 2021 –
13:00: Central African Republic – Mauritania, in Bangui [groupe E]13:00: Madagascar – Niger, in Toamasina [groupe K]13:00: Ivory Coast – Ethiopia, in Abidjan [groupe K]16:00: Guinea-Bissau – Congo, in Bissau [groupe I]16:00: Senegal – Eswatini, and Thiès [groupe I]16:00: Sierra Leone – Benin, in Freetown [groupe L]16:00: Nigeria – Lesotho, in Lagos [groupe L]19.00: Morocco – Burundi, in Rabat [groupe E]19.00: Mozambique – Cape Verde, in Maputo [groupe F]19.00: Cameroon – Rwanda, in Douala [groupe F]
[1] The African Football Confederation (CAF) has decided that the competition will continue to be called CAN 2021, despite being postponed until 2022.
