Senegal begin AFCON defence in style, Cameroon & Guinea play to draw

Reigning champions, Senegal kicked off their AFCON title defence with a 3-0 victory over Gambia while Cameroon and Guinea played to a 1-1 draw on Monday.

Lamine Camara bagged a brace for the Lions of Teranga with Pape Gueye also adding his name to the scoresheet. Meanwhile, Mohamed Bayo and Frank Magri scored for Syli National and Indomitable Lions, respectively in what was a share of spoils.

LAMINE CAMARA STRIKES TWICE AS SENEGAL SECURE 3-0 VICTORY OVER GAMBIA

This was the first meeting between the two sides in the Africa Cup of Nations. Excluding the African Nations Championship [CHAN], the two sides last faced off during the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

This is Gambia’s second appearance at AFCON having made their debut in the last edition in Cameroon in 2021. They went on to lose to the host nation in the quarter-final.

Senegal took the lead inside the first five minutes with Gueye slotting in from close range after Sadio Mane set him up in the box.

Later, seeking an equaliser, the Scorpions played constructive football but struggled to dismantle Senegal’s defence. And while the Gambians could win possession, they kept giving the ball away cheaply.

Just before the final whistle of the first half, Gambia went down to ten men with Ebou Adams receiving a straight red card.

In the second half, the Senegal youngster Lamine Camara grabbed a brace to ensure the maximum points for Aliou Cissé’s men. He scored his first goal in the 52nd minute and the second in the 86th minute.

CAMEROON AND GUINEA SHARE SPOILS

Meanwhile, the second match of the day saw Cameroon lock horns with Guinea in what was their third encounter at AFCON. All three meetings have been in the group stages.

The match between the two West African countries seemed to be balanced in the opening exchanges with both sides finding spaces in attack.

It was Guinea who broke the deadlocks in the 10th minute with Mohamed Bayo giving them a goal to lead after Cameroon’s defence stopped to play hoping for the referee to award them with a foul.

In the first-half’s stoppage time, Cameroon were handed a numerical advantage when Guinea’s captain François Kamano received marching orders.

In the 51st minute, Frank Magri headed home to level matters as the Indomitable Lions came back stronger in the second half.

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