Burundi and Ethiopia romp to Afcon qualifying wins

Burundi and Ethiopia cruised to big away victories on Friday, and virtually sealed places in the main qualifying phase of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.

Jordi Liongola, Bienvenue Kanakimana, Abdoul Karim and Nduwumwe Mossi scored as Burundi hammered Chad 4-0 in N’Djamena in the first leg of a preliminary round tie after leading 2-0 at half-time.

Although Chad are 32 places below Burundi in the world rankings, they were expected to perform better at home in the uncomfortable heat of central Africa.

Abel Yalew netted twice and Canaan Markneh once as Ethiopia triumphed 3-0 against Sao Tome e Principe in Moroccan Atlantic port city El Jadida. They were two goals in front by the break.

While there have been 13 goals in the six first legs since Wednesday, Egypt-based Yalew was the only scorer to bag a brace.

The El Jadida scoreline was more predictable than that in Chad as Sao Tome are among the African football minnows.

Known as the Falcons and True Parrots, they are handicapped by not being able to play at home in the island nation off the west coast because they lack an international-standard stadium.

The other qualifier produced no goals as Somalia and Mauritius drew 0-0 in the Mozambican capital, Maputo.

Security concerns forced the Somalis to move the match from Mogadishu. Not conceding at ‘home’ means a score draw in the return match will take them through.

Mauritius qualified for the 1974 Cup of Nations, when just eight teams participated. The 2027 finals in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will involve 24 countries.

All three return matches are scheduled for Tuesday. The aggregate winners go into a 48-nation draw and six group stage matchdays kick off on September 23.

While Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda qualify automatically as co-hosts, they will play in the group phase to gain competitive match practice.

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