Egypt Reach 2026 World Cup with Mohamed Salah's Brace
The Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah found the net twice as Egypt secured a 3-0 victory against Djibouti in Casablanca on Wednesday ensuring their place in the 2026 World Cup.
The 33-year-old has now scored nine goals during a lengthy qualifying process that commenced two years back with Egypt's win providing them an unassailable five-point advantage over Burkina Faso in Group A.
Salah a two-time recipient of the African Footballer of the Year award contributed to Liverpool securing the Premier League title for the 20th time last season matching the record and claimed the Golden Boot with 29 goals.
However the Egyptian national team captain has struggled to maintain his form at Liverpool this season managing only three goals across nine matches in all competitions.
Ibrahim Adel gave Egypt the lead in the eighth minute against opponents ranked 158 places below them globally followed by Salah scoring again six minutes later and once more in the 84th minute.
Despite Egypt's record seven Africa Cup of Nations victories their World Cup performances have been modest having qualified only four times in 15 attempts in 1934 1990 2018 and now 2026.
Thomas Partey the former Arsenal midfielder was among the scorers as Ghana overwhelmed the Central African Republic 5-0 in Meknes and now requires one point from their final Group I home match against Comoros to secure qualification.
The other goals for the Black Stars came from Mohammed Salisu Alexander Djiku captain Jordan Ayew and Kamaldeen Sulemana with Ghana leading 1-0 at the interval.
Ghana now have 22 points and a significantly better goal difference compared to Madagascar who trail by three points Mali initially favored to top the group are no longer in contention with 15 points.
Cape Verde fought back from a two-goal deficit in Tripoli to secure a 3-3 draw with Libya moving closer to their first World Cup participation.
The island nation with a population of approximately 550,000 located off Senegal's coast will secure top spot in Group D by defeating Eswatini in Praia on Monday.
Known as the Blue Sharks Cape Verde holds a two-point lead over Cameroon who defeated Mauritius 2-0 in Saint-Pierre thanks to a goal from Manchester United striker Bryan Mbeumo.
Cape Verde has accumulated 20 points after nine matches two more than Cameroon which holds the African record with eight World Cup appearances.
A Challenging Start
Roberto Lopes a defender for Republic of Ireland club Shamrock Rovers scored an own goal in the opening minute as Cape Verde endured a difficult start.
Telmo Arcanjo equalised for Cape Verde before Ezoo el Mariamy and Mahmoud al Shalwi scored either side of halftime giving the Mediterranean Knights a 3-1 advantage.
Sidny Cabral narrowed the gap and Willy Semedo levelled the match in the 82nd minute creating a tense conclusion as Cape Verde aimed for a fourth goal to secure qualification.
The winning goal did not come but Cape Verde are expected to overcome Eswatini who remain without a win in the group after letting a two-goal lead slip in a 2-2 draw with Angola in Lobamba.
Cameroon needed a full three points in Mauritius to maintain their chance of surpassing Cape Verde but had to wait until the 92nd minute to secure the win.
Dynamo Moscow's Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu gave the Indomitable Lions the lead in the 57th minute with Mbeumo adding a second goal in stoppage time for his fourth in the qualifiers.
Cameroon will finish their campaign with a home match against Angola in Yaounde and must win to retain any chance of automatic qualification.
If Cape Verde finishes first Cameroon will aim to be among the four highest-ranked second-place teams to qualify for the November play-offs.
The victors of the African mini-tournament featuring single-match semi-finals and a final will progress to the six-nation inter-continental play-offs next March competing for two World Cup spots.
Eswatini appeared poised to end an eight-match winless streak in the group when Justice Figuareido based in South Africa capitalised on long passes to score twice in the second half.
Angola now managed by French coach Patrice Beaumelle following the dismissal of Portuguese manager Pedro Goncalves reduced the deficit via a goal from Jonathan Buatu.
Poor marking by Eswatini on a corner allowed Papel Ary to head in the equaliser with ten minutes of normal time left.