By Victor Okoye
Guinea-Bissau concluded their Group A campaign of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Cote d’Ivoire 2023 Qualifiers with a 2-1 victory over Sierra Leone on Monday.
Victory for the Guineans at the Stade du 24 Septembre in Bissau meant they put the icing on the cake on their qualification to next year’s continental showpiece.
With a fourth AFCON qualification already sealed, Guinea-Bissau were up against a spirited Sierra Leone side that was looking at spoiling their celebration.
The visitors broke the deadlock as early as the 6th minute when Ahmadou Bakayoko was at the end of a superb team effort to make it 1-0 to the joy of the travelling fans.
The early wake-up call meant the hosts had to re-adjust their game plan to bring the game back under control.
Nito Gomes did exactly that in the 35th minute to level matters ahead of the break to the relief of the home supporters who had their mood dampened by the early shock.
Coming back from the break, The Djurtus continued from where they left off, putting their visitors under immense pressure which resulted in a goal in the 48th minute.
All thanks to a wonderful strike by Franculino Dju who put his side ahead.
Sierra Leone would not be hard done by the early second half goal and quickly adjusted their focus, launching more attacks and build-up plays but could not really break the last line of defense.
The fixture ended with a good result for Guinea-Bissau who finished second in the group with 13 points behind table-toppers the Super Eagles of Nigeria who finished on 15 points.
The final fixture of the CAF AFCON Cote d’Ivoire 2023 qualifiers takes place on Tuesday, with Cameroon taking on Burundi in what promises to be a highly entertaining clash and exciting close to the qualifiers.
Both Cameroon and Burundi are one point behind Namibia who top the group with five points.
A win for either side will see them secure a place in Cote d’Ivoire next year.(NAN)
