CAF U17 qualifiers preview: Ghana seek to complete Cameroon double,Young Pharaohs seek to revive Egyptian football fortunes

Published on: 26 September 2014

The Egyptian U-17 team will seek to revive the dwindling fortunes of their national teams when they face South Africa on Saturday in the second leg of the final round of the African U-17 Championship Niger 2015. 

Egyptian football has witnessed sour moments in recent times after back-to-back losses by the senior national team in the qualifiers for the Orange Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2015. The Pharaohs lost 2-0 to Senegal in Dakar before succumbing to a lone goal defeat against rivals Tunisia two weeks ago in Cairo, putting them in a difficult situation as far as qualification is concerned.

Earlier, the U-20 team failed to qualify for the Orange African Youth Championship Senegal 2015 after losing 3-2 on aggregate to Congo at the final round.

There is therefore mounting pressure on coach Meatemed Gamal and his charges to restore the fading hopes and give their fans something to cheer about.

The Young Pharaohs lost the first leg 2-1 in Rustenburg and face a daunting task against the Amajimbos in the decider in Cairo. Expectations are high of the youngsters who will be hoping to succeed at a stage their seniors failed.

After missing out on the last edition in 2013 in Morocco, Gamal finds himself in a tight situation to guide the twinkle little stars to overturn the result and achieve qualification.

South African has never qualified for the continental championship since 2007 but coach Molefi Ntseki is upbeat the jinx will be broken this time. Despite carrying a lone goal advantage, the South African trainer is convinced the Egyptians cannot stand between them and the dream of making it to Niger.

“Everyone looks in good condition and the focus now is Saturday’s game. That is what will shape our future. But overall, the boys are in tip top condition and there won’t be any excuse of not reaching Niger for the CAF Youth championships,” Ntseki told the South African Football Association (SAFA) website upon the team’s arrival in the Egyptian capital.

Elsewhere in Calabar, reigning world champions, the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria face a tough test against Gabon, with a 2-1 loss in Libreville. Nigeria, a dominant force in youth football are in no mood to miss out on a tournament they have emerged twice, 2001 and 2007.

In Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire will face Angola in a match of equals, after settling for a 1-1 draw in the previous fixture whilst Uganda comes up against Zambia in Kampala.

On Sunday, Ghana’s Black Starlets will be aiming for a double over Cameroon to seal their place at next year’s tournament. Going into the game with a 2-1 win from the first leg, Ghana coach Samuel Fabin insists the job is not yet done.

"I want to qualify the Black Starlets for the Championship. We hold the lead but it's not done yet. We have lots of work to do. Despite winning, we still need to correct certain areas," Fabin was quoted by the Ghana Football Association website.

Togo will battle it out with Guinea in Lome whilst Tunisia squares Mali in Tunis in the final match to determine the nine finalists who will join hosts Niger at next year’s tournament.

The tournament will take place from 15 February – 1 March, where the semi-finalists at the continental championship will qualify to represent Africa at the FIFA U-17 World Cup fixed for 17 October – 8 November in Chile.

Fixtures

Saturday, 27 September 2014 Nigeria vs Gabon (1-2) 16H00 Calabar Cote d’Ivoire vs Angola (1-1)15H00 Abidjan Uganda vs Zambia (0-2) 16H00 Kampala Egypt vs South Africa (1-2) 19H00 Cairo Sunday, 28 September 2014 Togo vs Guinea (0-1) 15H30 Lome

Ghana vs Cameroon (2-1) 15H00 Accra

Tunisia vs Mali (0-2) 16H00 Tunis

 

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