2017 AFCON: 7 places up for grabs

The situation still remains open in six groups.

As the saying goes, many are called but few are chosen. The fifth day of play of the qualifiers for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations to take place in Gabon has rendered its verdict with nine teams qualified already for the final round of the prestigious tournament and the remaining six to be decided on the sixth and last playing day billed for the weekend running from September 2nd to 3rd.

Of the seven available spots, six will emerge from the group leaders while the last one will be overall best runner. The nine qualified teams include Morocco who qualified since on the 4th day of play, Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Senegal, Zimbabwe and the host country Gabon.

Group A: One Seat for Three

The situation in group A is somehow complicated with three teams vying for the lone ticket to Gabon. They are Liberia, Tunisia and Togo. Both Liberia and Tunisia in the first and second positions respectively in the group have 10 points each with Togo in the third position lurking from behind to benefit from any false step from the group leaders and runners up.

In case of a draw on the last day of play between the top duo, Togo will sail through in case of victory against Djibouti. The suspense in the group will therefore drag on till September 3rd.

Group B: Congo-Central Africa Duel

With Angola on four points and Madagascar, two points out of the way, the contention for the group ticket therefore boils down to a duel between the group leaders, the Democratic Republic of Congo on 12 points and the Central African Republic on 10 points.

However Congo has an edge as they will be facing the direct challenger, Central Africa republic on the sixth and last day of play. A draw will be sufficient to enable the Congolese sail through.

Group C: Mali One Step to Gabon

Mali is well on course to qualify for the 2017 AFCON given that they are five points away from their closest challenger Benin. Mali has 13 points in five outings whereas Benin has eight points in four outings.

This means should Benin win the remaining two games and Mali plays a draw or concedes a defeat, the leeway will be open to Benin. Mali will likely sail through as they will be having a direct confrontation with Benin in their last group game and a mere draw will be enough to seal the fate of Benin.

Group D: Burkina Faso-Uganda Neck to Neck

The situation in group D is similar to group B where the contention for the group ticket has boiled down to a duel between two teams; Burkina Faso and Uganda with ten points each. It will therefore be a distant duel between the two countries on September 3 as Burkina Faso will be playing host to Botswana while Uganda also welcomes Comoros.

In case of victory for one and defeat for the other, the victor sails through. In case of a case then the goal difference will be a deciding factor.

Group I: Cote d’Ivoire On the Verge

The defending champions have their chances of defending the title they won in Equatorial Guinea threatened by little known Sierra Leone. The elephants though first of the group have bare two points ahead of their closest challenger, Sierra Leone.

More so the two teams will be in direct confrontation on September 2nd in what will look like a mini final. Cote d’Ivoire with nine points stands a greater chance of qualifying especially as they will be playing at home. Sierra Leone absolutely needs a victory whereas a draw will suffice for Cote d’Ivoire to sail through.

Group L: Zimbabwe-Swaziland Jostle for Group Spot

Like in group B and D, the battle in Group L will be between Zimbabwe and Swaziland; Zimbabwe has 11 points while Swaziland has 8 points. It will therefore another distant duel when Zimbabwe travels to Guinea on September 2nd, the day after Swaziland must have slot it out with Malawi in Blantyre.

Causalities: The main losers of the qualifiers for the 2017 AFCON are heavyweights like Nigeria, South Africa, Congo, Guinea and Zambia who have all won the competition in the past.