Achraf Hakimi curled in a long-range free kick as Morocco came from behind to beat Malawi 2-1 in the last-16 of the Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday and stay on course for their first African title in over 45 years. This came after a previously lacklustre Senegal pulled off a 2-0 win over Cape Verde to also reach the quarter-finals.

Fullback Hakimi’s precise strike completed the turn around at the Ahmadou Ahidjou Stadium after Youssef En-Nesyri had equalised on the stroke of halftime.

Malawi went ahead early after a world-class goal from Frank Mhango, who hit a speculative left-footed effort from some 40 metres out and watched in delight as the swerving ball caught out Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and crashed into the top of the net.

Morocco will meet either Ivory Coast or Egypt in their quarter-final in Yaoundé.

After a tournament littered with upsets, Malawi threatened to cause another as Mhango produced an astonishing effort in the seventh minute.

He then had another chance from a quick counter attack in the 23rd minute to double the lead as the lowly ranked Malawi, participating in only their third Cup of Nations finals and getting past the first round for the first time, looked to shake up their heavily fancied opponents.

However, they quickly retreated after that and defended tenaciously, with goalkeeper Charles Thom producing several unorthodox saves to keep his side’s lead intact.

Yet Thom let a header from En-Nesyri slip through his hands for Morocco’s equaliser two minutes into first-half stoppage time and there was little he could do about the rocket-like free kick from Hakimi.

In between there were several close shaves as Sofiane Boufal missed an easy chance and substitute Ryan Mmaee struck wide from close range.

Source: France 24

As football fans reel over the deaths of at least eight people outside Olembe Stadium, questions have been raised as to how the tragedy unfolded. There had been concerns about poor preparation ahead of the tournament.

Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Patrice Motsepe said a probe into the crush will begin immediately

Investigations are underway after at least eight people were killed and dozens more injured in a stampede outside a match at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) football tournament in Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde.

The crush took place as large crowds tried to enter Olembe Stadium, where the host country was playing Comoros in a highly anticipated final-16 knockout game.

“Eight deaths were recorded, two women in their 30s, four men in their 30s, one child, one body taken away by the family,” said a preliminary report from the Public Health Ministry.

The tragedy has realized ongoing fears over the capacity of Cameroon to stage the continent’s largest sporting event.

“The local population is angry because information isn’t coming in on exactly what happened,” correspondent Blaise Eong told DW. “People are also angry that security forces outside the stadium could not contain the fans that were rushing into the stadium.”

CAF officials hold a moment of silence following the deadly stampede in Yaounde

‘No excuse’

Cameroonian President Paul Biya has ordered an investigation “so that all light is shed on this tragic incident,” Communications Minister Rene Emmanuel Sadi said.

Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Patrice Motsepe on Tuesday called for an immediate probe into the crush, with the first report to be submitted on Friday.

“There is no excuse for what has happened. We must show responsibility when people lose their lives and are injured,” he said.

“We will have very tough and very hard discussions behind closed doors,” he added.

‘Complete chaos’

“According to police sources on the ground, people tried to force their way into the stadium, and that’s when the stampede happened,” Eong said.

Witnesses on the ground at the time of the stampede said the crowd was surging towards an open entrance gate after a long wait outside the stadium. When stewards closed the gate, people continued trying to push forward.

“When the security guys finally began opening the gates, with all the anxiety and having been locked out, people pushed the security guys away and forced themselves inside,” witness Marie Asongafack said.

Witnesses say they tried to revive victims before emergency services arrived

“That’s where it all began,” she added. “By the time I found myself in front, there were people on the ground being trampled on.”

Another man told AFP that the entrance to the stadium was “complete chaos” as fans without tickets tried to find a way inside.

“I arrived a quarter of an hour before kickoff,” he said. “I had my ticket, but, all of a sudden, a group of people without tickets arrived and tried to force their way through and we found ourselves pushed up against the fences.”

In the aftermath of the crush, people were seen lying motionless on the ground as bystanders tried to resuscitate victims before medical help arrived.

The Public Health Ministry said victims were “immediately transported” away from the scene, but “heavy road traffic slowed down the transport.”

Witnesses also said children were among those caught up in the crush.

“I saw a child less than 10 years old, lifeless,” Asongafack said. “Guys were just trying to revive him.”

Stadiums in Cameroon are supposed to operate at reduced capacity according to pandemic measures

Families still searching for loved ones

There were scenes of chaos and confusion outside Messassi hospital after the incident, with at least 38 people hurt in the stampede in addition to those who were killed.

Public Health Minister Manaouda Malachie said 31 of the 38 injured people were responding well. Speaking to reporters, nurse Olinga Prudence said some of the injured “are in a desperate condition.”

People were still gathering outside hospitals in Yaounde on Tuesday morning, searching for missing family members.

“I am helpless: The police have not been of any help and I have not been able to trace my two brothers,” 24-year-old student Festus Ndi said.

Planning issues come to light

The tragedy in Yaounde has shone a spotlight on the preparation issues that plagued Cameroon in the lead-up to the football tournament.

Cameroon is hosting AFCON for the first time in 50 years. It was initially supposed to host the competition in 2019. At the time, it was stripped of its duties owing to serious issues with planning — especially when it came to infrastructure — as well as the ongoing Anglophone Crisis and Boko Haram insurgency.

Organizers were particularly concerned about Olembe Stadium, where the tragedy took place. The country’s largest stadium has a capacity of 60,000, but the crowd is supposed to be limited to 80% capacity in line with coronavirus measures.

In order to gain entry to AFCON matches, fans must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test and be vaccinated, alongside normal security checks at stadiums.

As news of the crush spread on social media, TV stations broadcast footage of people jumping over security fences amid reports that police were quickly overwhelmed.

“Clearly there were deficiencies, failures and weaknesses,” CAF president Motsepe said on Tuesday. “There were problems that should have been foreseen.”

Though no decisions on future measures at AFCON matches have yet been made, Eong said it was possible that stadium capacities would be reduced even further in light of the disaster.

“With this incident, we may find ourselves in a situation where the matches may go ahead without fans, or [organizers] may bring down the number of fans that can go to stadiums,” he said.

The quarterfinal match scheduled to be played at the stadium on Sunday will now be switched to the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaounde.

Culled from DW

The deadly crush outside a stadium at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon was caused by an access gate being closed for “inexplicable reasons”, according to the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Patrice Motsepe has called for an immediate investigation into the disaster in which eight people died and 38 were injured, seven of whom are in a serious condition.

The carnage happened ahead of Cameroon’s last-16 tie with Comoros on Monday night.

The organisers have moved the next match scheduled at the Olembe stadium, Sunday’s quarter-final, to the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaounde, the Cameroon capital.

It remains to be seen if the Paul Biya Stadium will host one of the semi-finals as well as the final on February 6, as previously planned.

Cameroon President Paul Biya also ordered an investigation into the tragedy, which came a day after at least 17 people died after a fire set off a series of explosions at a nightclub in Yaounde.

A witness said the stampede at the south entrance of the stadium happened after supporters were directed by security officials toward an entrance gate that was locked. The gate was eventually opened, the witness said, causing a surge and people were trampled. Children were caught up in the stampede, the witness said.

“When the security guys finally began opening the gates, with all the anxiety and after having been locked out … people pushed the security guys away and forced themselves inside,” said the witness, Marie-Therese Asongafack. “That’s where it all began … By the time I found myself in front, there were people on the ground being trampled on.”

Medical help wasn’t immediately available, “so people were just trying their basic first aid on victims,” Asongafack said. “I saw a child less than 10 years old, lifeless. Guys were trying to revive him.”

Motsebe said that there will be a meeting with organisers on Wednesday and that investigation report must be submitted by Friday.

“There is no excuse for what has happened. We must show responsibility when people lose their lives and are injured,” Motsepe said on Tuesday.

“What happened yesterday in terms of the proximity of people being allowed to the stadium in a manner that is not properly coordinated and governed will never happen again,” he added.

“I went to see where the people lost their lives and you see it’s a gate. That gate was supposed to be open. Because if it was open, they would have walked through and it was closed for inexplicable reasons.

“If that gate was open as it was supposed to, we wouldn’t have had this problem we have now, this loss of life.

“So of course, as part of the hearing, we want to know who closed that gate, who was responsible for that gate.

“Clearly there were deficiencies, clearly there were failures. There were weaknesses. There are things that should have been foreseen. We have to take emergency and urgent steps now.”

The stadium, which hosted the tournament’s opening ceremony, was built in preparation for the delayed competition, which kicked off earlier this month.

Stadiums have been operating at 80 per cent capacity during the Africa Cup of Nations due to restrictions placed on organisers because of the coronavirus pandemic.

But following a low turnout in the first round games at brand new stadiums Cameroon authorities had thrown open stadium gates, organised mass transport and given out free tickets to lure fans.

A minute silence will be observed before all remaining matches.

Sources:  Reuters, AP

Liverpool star Sadio Mane ended a 243-minute Senegal goal drought by scoring in a 2-0 win over nine-man Cape Verde in a fiery Africa Cup of Nations last-16 clash in Bafoussam on Tuesday.

The goal came on 63 minutes after the islanders had goalkeeper Josimar ‘Vozinha’ Dias and midfielder Patrick Andrade sent off.

Mane was forced to leave the field soon after breaking the deadlock as his face was swollen following a collision with Vozinha, which led to the second red card.

Bamba Dieng, who replaced Mane, added a second goal two minutes into added time after a breakaway left a single Cape Verde defender facing two Senegalese attackers.

Senegal, seeking to win the flagship African competition for the first time after twice finishing runners-up, will meet Mali or Equatorial Guinea on Sunday in the quarter-finals.

Before the kick-off, the teams and match officials stood still and silent in memory of the eight people who died in a crush at Olembe Stadium in Yaounde on Monday before Cameroon defeated the Comoros.

Cape Verde welcomed back head coach Pedro ‘Bubista’ Brito, who had to watch the group stage in the island nation as he recovered from coronavirus.

In the opposite dugout was Aliou Cisse, a Cup of Nations runner-up as a player in 2002 and as a coach in 2019.

Having failed to score in their last two group matches against Guinea and Malawi, Senegal almost took the lead 40 seconds into the match through Mane.

Major blow

Following a move down the left flank, the ball ran loose in the box and the reigning African Footballer of the Year unleashed a thunderbolt that cannoned off the far post.

Senegal seemed determined to end their goal drought early in the match and continually put pressure on the Cape Verde defence at Stade Kouekong in the western Cameroon highlands.

Cape Verde suffered a major blow on 21 minutes when Andrade was sent off for stamping on the leg of Pape Gueye.

The Algerian referee initially produced a yellow card, then upgraded it to a red after watching replays of the incident on the touchline VAR monitor.

Despite being numerically disadvantaged, Cape Verde contained Senegalese attacks until Mane came close to breaking the deadlock six minutes before half-time.

A slick exchange of passes inside the box set Mane free, but Vozinha and Steven Fortes combined to block his attempt to score.

As if facing one of the tournament title favourites with 10 men was not sufficiently difficult, Cape Verde were reduced to nine men when Vozinha was sent off 12 minutes into the second half.

The goalkeeper and Mane collided as they chased a long pass and after going to the monitor again, the referee brandished his red card to the goalkeeper, who had left the field suffering from concussion.

Marcio da Rosa, who plays in the Portuguese third division, took over as goalkeeper with forward Garry Rodrigues taken off.

Senegal were quick to take advantage of having two extra outfield players as Mane scored with a superbly placed shot into the roof of the net when a corner was only partially cleared by Nuno Borges.

Source: AFP

Strict Covid-19 protocols and exorbitant ticket prices have resulted in many Cameroonians watching the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in fan parks or at home, rather than inside the stadiums where matches are being held.

After a 50-year wait to host the Afcon again, the expectation was that residents of the football-obsessed country would fill stadiums and display their passion for the continent and the world to see. That hasn’t happened, partly because Cameroon’s vaccination policy is a deterrent for many fans. Only vaccinated spectators are allowed inside the stadiums and they have to produce a negative polymerase chain reaction test to get access.

“I have two main reasons for watching matches from fan zones,” said football supporter Jean Claude Armel. “The first is because I was discouraged by the medical pass … There is also the time factor.” Armel had intended to watch games in the stadium from the round of 16, which started on 23 January, “but as long as the medical protocol is maintained I won’t go anyway”.

Armel’s sentiment is shared by many, including Njiya Jores, a company owner who lives in Etoudi, a neighbourhood in Yaoundé that is barely a stone’s throw from the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium.

“You don’t oblige people to get vaccinated against Covid-19 and still expect to see the stadiums filled. Personally, I have no intentions to get myself vaccinated now. So, since I can’t watch from the stadium, I prefer to watch at home or in fan zones. The ambiance is the same.”

The Covid-19 protocol has had some positive impact on getting people vaccinated, however. Prior to the start of the tournament on 9 January, hundreds of fans queued for long hours to get the jab. Statistics of how many Cameroonians are vaccinated are hard to find, and attempts to get them from the department of health were unsuccessful. Reports claim that less than 3% of the country’s estimated just over 26 million population is vaccinated. 

Out of reach

The vaccination requirement has not been the only hindrance to filling the stadiums. Supporters have complained about the price of tickets and the complexity of buying them online, which is the Confederation of African Football’s preferred method and something many fans aren’t used to doing.

Tickets range from 3 000 Central African francs (about R79) to CFA20 000. For domestic football, tickets normally cost between CFA500 and CFA1 000. The high prices of Afcon tickets have excluded many football fans who don’t have the financial means to buy tickets to the stadiums. There are also those who are taking advantage by buying tickets and selling them at an even higher price on the black market.

“It is difficult to obtain a ticket, especially when Cameroon is playing,” said a Cameroonian who declined to be named. “When I think of all the stress I have to go through, I rather prefer to watch from home. If you buy a ticket for double the initial price, how do you feed and provide for your family?”

In Limbe, in western Cameroon, the location of the stadium outside the town is a problem for many fans. Erwin Ayota, a journalist from the area, said the “turnout has been timid for obvious reasons”.

“The stadium is located at Ngueme, an area where access is not easy,” he said. “Getting to the field for the population of Limbe is difficult. People have to trek for long distances because of the absence of bikes and taxis. People feel discouraged to go to the stadium.”

He adds that the Covid-19 protocols “created an atmosphere of unwillingness to go to the stadium. Now the government has tried to counteract this by making buses available to ease transportation, and things are slowly improving.”

Boosting the numbers

To boost attendance, President Paul Biya issued instructions to reduce work and school hours in Cameroon. Classes are now held from 7.30am to 1pm and work hours are from 7.30am to 2pm. This exceptional measure, which is more effective in the public sector, came into effect on 17 January.

Some government officials and prominent personalities have also made a huge number of tickets available to fans to enable them to watch matches. Other institutions have made attending the tournament mandatory, supplying their staff with tickets.

These measures have boosted attendance somewhat. “More and more people are [now] coming to watch games in the stadiums. In the coming games, notably in the round of 16, there will be more people in the stadiums,” said Ekombe Pascaline, director of the Limbe Omnisport Stadium.

“I feel elated that the stands are full,” he continued, exaggerating to make his point as the opposite is true. “You organise a tournament of this magnitude and the stands are empty, it doesn’t speak well. So we are happy that the population of Limbe and other regions are coming to watch matches of the Afcon.

“We had very heavy participation, especially during match day two. Even on the first day of play, our attendance compared with other sites was not bad. We want to encourage many more people to come and watch matches in Limbe.”

Culled from New Frame

Hosts Cameroon are through to the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations but only after labouring to a 2-1 win over a Comoros side who were forced to start an outfield player in goal and played most of the game with 10 men.

The Comoros started with left-back Chaker Alhadhur between the posts in Yaounde after two of their three goalkeepers were ruled out due to Covid-19 while the other was missing due to injury.

They then had captain Nadjim Abdou sent off after just seven minutes, and Karl Toko-Ekambi put Cameroon in front before skipper Vincent Aboubakar netted his sixth goal of the tournament.

Despite that it was a heroic performance from the Comoros, who kept the tie alive until the end thanks to Youssouf M’Changama’s stunning late free-kick.

The Indomitable Lions keep their dream of winning the Cup of Nations on home soil alive as they advance to a last-eight tie against Gambia on Saturday, yet this was the Comoros’ night, despite the outcome.

The tiny Indian Ocean island nation qualified for the last 16 in their first ever appearance at the Cup of Nations after finishing as one of the best third-placed teams in the group stage.

However, their dream turned to a nightmare as a total of 12 players and staff tested positive for Covid-19 two days before the tie, including goalkeepers Ali Ahamada and Moyadh Ousseini.

Their other goalkeeper, Salim Ben Boina, was injured but they had hoped Ahamada would be able to start after he tested negative on the day of the game.

The 30-year-old Ahamada flew from Garoua, where he had been isolating, to Yaounde on Monday afternoon in the hope of being able to play, only for the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to decide otherwise as his positive result had come just two days earlier.

Alhadhur, a reserve left-back for French Ligue 2 side Ajaccio, wore the gloves, with tape used to mark out his number three on the back of his goalkeeper’s jersey.

It was a farcical scene, and the Comoros’ plight worsened when Abdou was shown a straight red card for a foul on Moumi Ngamaleu after the Ethiopian referee went to review images of his challenge.

Rather than give up, the Comoros kept going and they only fell behind in the 29th minute when Aboubakar teed up Toko-Ekambi to slot home.

The islanders, whose coach Amir Abdou was among those missing after testing positive, almost equalised shortly after as Ahmed Mogni forced Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana into a fine save.

Aboubakar had a second-half effort disallowed for offside before making it 2-0 with 20 minutes left, finishing excellently after being picked out by Martin Hongla.

Yet there was no collapse from the Comoros, who pulled one back courtesy of M’Changama’s piledriver from 35 metres and go out with their heads held high.

Source: AFP