U17 AFCON Qualifiers: Senegal, Mali and Burkina Faso Miss Out as Nigeria, Egypt and Others Advance
The penultimate round of the qualifiers for the 2015 U17 Africa Cup of Nations in Niger was played this past weekend, producing a series of shocks and decisive results as the continent’s top youth teams battled for a place in the final round.
Senegal, who held Togo to a goalless draw in Lomé, were stunned at home with a 1-1 result, allowing the Togolese to advance on away goals. The Lionceaux de la Teranga will regret their inability to capitalize on home advantage.
Elsewhere, Burkina Faso and Mali saw their campaigns end prematurely, with Cameroon holding the former to a 0-0 draw away to progress 2-0 on aggregate, and Benin eliminating the latter with a narrow 1-0 win.
In Cairo, Egypt needed a dramatic 10-9 penalty shootout victory to edge past Congo, while Nigeria underlined their status as favorites with a commanding 4-0 victory over DR Congo.
Several teams advanced without playing due to withdrawals. Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Tunisia moved forward after South Sudan, Libya, and Sierra Leone pulled out respectively.
The final round of qualifiers will take place with the first legs scheduled between September 12–14, and the return legs between September 26–29.
Notable Results – U17 AFCON 2015 Qualifiers (Second Round)
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Nigeria 4–0 DR Congo (Agg: 5–0)
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Gabon 3–0 Ethiopia (Agg: 3–0)
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Senegal 1–1 Togo (Agg: 1–1, Togo advance on away goals)
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Morocco 1–2 Guinea (Agg: 1–2)
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Cameroon 0–0 Burkina Faso (Agg: 2–0)
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Angola 2–0 Mozambique (Agg: 3–2)
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Rwanda 2–3 Uganda (Agg: 2–7)
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Botswana 0–5 Zambia (Agg: 2–5)
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Mali 0–0 Benin (Agg: 0–1)
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Congo 1–0 Egypt (Agg: 1–1, Egypt win 10–9 on penalties)
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South Africa 4–0 Tanzania (Agg: 4–0)
Walkovers
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Ghana advance after South Sudan withdrawal
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Ivory Coast advance after Libya withdrawal
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Tunisia advance after Sierra Leone withdrawal
The final phase of the U17 Africa Cup of Nations will take place in Niger in 2015, with the top-performing teams expected to represent Africa at the FIFA U17 World Cup.
