Caf releases Nations Cup draw

Holders Egypt will start the defence of their African Nations Cup title against Burundi in Cairo in September.

The 2006 winners were handed a relatively easy passage through to the 2008 finals in Ghana after being paired with Botswana, Burundi and Mauritania in their qualifying group.

The draw for the 2008 tournament was released by the Confederation of African Football in Cairo on Thursday.

The Ivory Coast, the runner-up at Egypt 2006, are in Group One with Gabon, Madagascar and Djibouti, while 2006 bronze medallists Nigeria are in Group Three with Lesotho, Uganda and Niger.

The opening round of group matches are to be played between 1-3 September, with the final round of games ending between 7-9 September 2007.

Forty-seven countries will compete in 12 groups to qualify for 15 out of the 16 places at the 2008 finals.

Automatic qualification is guaranteed to the team that tops each group, while the top three runners-up in the groups consisting of four teams will join them.

This means that only one team has the chance of qualifying from Group 12, which has just three teams - Morocco, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Ghana qualify for the 2008 tournament as hosts.

Nations Cup qualifying groups

Group One
Gabon, Madagascar, Djibouti, Ivory Coast.

Group Two
Mauritania, Botswana, Egypt, Burundi.

Group Three
Uganda, Lesotho, Nigeria, Niger.

Group Four
Sudan, Seychelles, Mauritius, Tunisia.

Group Five
Rwanda, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia.

Group Six
Swaziland, Angola, Kenya, Eritrea.

Group Seven
Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Sénégal, Mozambique.

Group Eight
Guinea, Algeria, Gambia, Cape Verde.

Group Nine
Sierra Leone, Mali, Togo, Bénin.

Group Ten
Ethiopia, Libya, DR Congo, Namibia.

Group Eleven
South Africa, Congo, Chad, Zambia.

Group Twelve
Morocco, Malawi, Zimbabwe.


Nigeria should have no problem as Uganda are the only other team in the group who can field a viable side.......however I see some interesting situations possibly happening here.......Angola and Kenya will be a battle I think Group 8 will be really tight.....I think Guinea will get first.....and Algeria will be odd man out again!......Togo will have trouble......Benin and Mali are both sides that could create problems for them.....my personal favorite is group 11 however.....Zambia-South Africa.....that could really go either way

^^Yeah it'll be a big fight between us and South Africa...Both teams are in many respects in some kind of transition but should have fairly solid squads by the time the qualifiers start...Congo are also quite stubborn even though we did beat them both home and away during the WC qualifiers...Chad, well dunno much about them...lol.

Looking at those draws, I reckon we'll continue to have a Nations Cup without East African representation...

ya...but did you really expect there to be....anyway Kenya will give Angola and co. a run for their money.

Really looking forward to the next one already.

Will be rooting for Ethiopia but i don't know if they'll make it even though Libya is the only real threat in the group.

DR Congo?

not toe b mean but the only way Ethiopia shall advance is if Libya and Doctor Congo are told to run 26.2 miles......KPOM!

well....the matches are set to start very soon....Nigeria have Niger in our first match......and frankly it should be a walkover....however there is some intrigue as Yakubu might show up...and rumors that Jay Jay Okocha is ending his retirement (I hope not...he's already caused us to miss one tournament)......and this is Africa....so you know there will be surprises...maybe Zimbabwe will oust Morroco.

i can't wait for the matches. our strikers are really into form at the moment and martins will be extremely confident since signing for a new club and being and starter and having the #9 shirt. i'm can't imagine how bad that game will be.

the first rounds of matches is complete...except of course for the teams placed in these nonsense three team groups i.e. Zimbabwe and Ivory Coast....Nigeria had a lazy 2-0 in Abuja.....the result seemed predetermined..but the boys played good football....I'll admit I was surprised Obi was used as a bench player.....some major surprise though...Eritrea managed to defeat Kenya..meanwhile Sudan currently is on top of group 4 as Tunisia somwhow managed to draw with Mauritius....and the potential darkhorses for the ACN 2008, Mali and Guinea got off to lacklustre starts with both drawing 0-0....and for all you Ethiopians...they got off to an absolutely brilliant start with a 1-0 win over Libya.

The two first are qualified? Or it's only the first?

First place and the best 3 second places.

Quite impressed with our opening 2-0 away win in Chad...coupled by South Africa's barren draw at home vs Congo. Next up the South Africans at home...win that and we'll be very much in the driving seat.

i can't believe south africa couldn't win that game. i don't know how they aren't as good as they should be. oh well. It was a good game for nigeria even though it was only 2-0. i thought that we would score more than that.

^^The shocking thing is their coach was pleased with the result saying the important thing was not to lose the first game. But really, them being content with a home draw vs Congo is a reflection of the low ebb that South African football has reached.

Ok,thanks.

South Africa should do something before 2010. Otherwise they got no chance in the World Cup.

well...I suppose paying millions to Parreira is their plan.....but it is not a very good plan...the man underachieved with Brazil....what will he do with this hapless South Africa team?....hopefully....South Africa will miss or come close to missing the next ACN....just so the players and FA realise how much work they have to put in before 2010......although I am much more concerned with the ability of the nation to host the tourney....it would be another embarrasment for Africa if the 2010 World Cup is in Australia.

^ No Im confident that South Africa will be able to host the World Cup with no problems.

The hardest in the our group was Libya and the fact that we (Ethiopia) beat them 1-0 gives me a little optimism. If we can beat Cogo after the Namibia match next year, i'm confident we can progress.

No I think DR Congo will qualify from this group.

Is it only one nation per group that advances? I keep on confusing the format with the World Cup's.

I'm not looking forward to this tournament. Even though we finally have a great coach, we just don't have the players. I mean, other than Rodriguez, Pienaar and maybe McCarthy I really have no idea what's gonna happen. Hopefully Parreira will get that one whom I am in love with now McCarthy to finally play for us and not just whine How we could've done with Mark Gonzalez, though. Would've been amazing

Yeah it's only the group winners...plus the best 3 runners up from the groups with four teams each.

How did CAF manage to come up up with this flawed system....how can they say that only one out of Zimbabwe and Morroco can make it to the tourney..when both these teams played at the most recently played ACN. So really what is being said is that is Seychelles were put in the group as well....then both of them will have the chance to qualify...I amazed at the idiocy of it.

Zimbabwe are not first seeders.
Not rated as one of the best 12.
Also, I don't think they'll just take the top 3 runners up from the groups of 4, I think it's all groups. Howev, obviously the runners up from the groups of 4 have a much much much bigger chance as they play more matches.

Cameroon beat up Rwanda couple of days ago...so that group should be no prob...

Who will qualify...




It's a flawed criterion as olu states but how many times have we said that about CAF?

Thanks for clarifying that Maurice. Anyway it really sucks having three teams in a group because if you lose one match then you're in big trouble. I remember like four years ago Egypt was with Madagscar and Mauritious in the group. We lost 1-0 against Madascar in the first match and for the first time in Egypt's history there was a threat that we weren't going to qualify. Another draw would've got us out but we won the rest of the games with big scores.

Terrible weekend for me, with South Africa beating us 1-0 at home. Damn. We're still very much in it though.

did anybody see Angola's game this weekend?
can somebody tell me how Ze Kalanga played?

wow....it was a mad week for international football in Africa....as far as the Super Eagles....we were able to go to Lesotho and pick up a 1-0 win...nothing spectacular by any means....we did however have two disallowed goals and a number of chances that we may well have taken...many here are not too happy..but I am satisfied....got the three points...we can save the drubbing for when they come here...it was nice to see Yakubu score again..as he is redeeming himself in the Nigerian public and within the team it self.

Now to other results...the biggest surprise of the weekend has to be Guinea losing to Cape Verde by the lone goal..this Guinea team is obviously very talented..but needs to avoid hideous results like this if they want to become a power...Egypt held to a scoreless draw against Botswana...just proves that you need to take your chances when you are away during qualifiers....we almost learned this lesson as well...Senegal also were downed 1-0...as well as Zimbabwe 1-0 to Malawi....it is becoming obvious that you need to take these away matches in Africa need to be taken seriously.....South Africa beat Zambia 1-0..which did surprise me....Bafana Bafana seemed in a downward spiral...but maybe this is the turnaround..Mali also gunnned down Togo 1-0...I really am rooting for Sissoko and co. in this group...I think they have ALOT more to give at ACN 2008 than Togo.

Hey Olu, I wa sjust wondering, do they show the Super Eagles, or the FA Cup and The NFL games on NTA Plus? My mom bought something so we can watch Nigerian TV and i was hoping that now i could see some nigerian matches. Also, do you know at what times the channel shows football shows like matches or highlights?

ahh...I wish I could give you a link to NTA programming...but to answer your question...yes....NTA is your source for nearly all SE matches....except for some exceptions when conditions are not good for them to broadcast the game (our match against Lesotho)......they will also show many matches involving all versions of Flying Eagles....and Super Falcons (womens team)....coverage of the African Champions League is also generally very good.....important matches in the NPL are shown....and their is good coverage of the final playoff and important cup matches....it is an essential channel for followers of Naija football really...so you and your family are making a good aquisition....however...I shall warn you to remember that the production values in Nigeria are not very high....and will pale in comparison to what you are used to in America!

oh i know that. btw i have one more question actually, is NTA the same as NTA Plus. Yesterday, i was trying to watch the final of the coca cola fa cup but i didn't know what time it was. i heard it was a good match. Will they possibly re show this on tv? i will try to look fro the schedule in the NTA website. Thanks for your help though

Alright everyone..it is time to start this back up........the third round of matches starts tommorrow....I don't really see that many great matchups this time around...but you know that there will be some drama somewhere....

Well here in Nigeria we have a new fancy foreign coach in the form of Bergi Vogts....and naturally...the red carpet is being laid out....let me say that if we win tommorrow Mr. Vogts will be hailed as our saviour...even though this team is mostly the work of Eguavoen, Siasia, and others...and you watch...if we lose or draw....it will be Eguavoen's head that rolls...not his.

But that is for different thread.

We have an interesting matchup with Uganda at home in Abeokuta..we are missing a few starters...the most prominent being Chidi Odiah, Vincent Enyeama, and maybe Kanu....however we have been blessed with great depth...even at goalkeeper when Austin Ejide is also very talented....Uganda have been blowing alot of hot air about how Nigeria is weak...but this is not the truth...the boys should be well motivated trying to impress the new manager and with some of the banter the Cranes have been throwing around.

I fully expect the Super Eagles to walk out winners in Abeokuta, but it will not be easy. Uganda will sit back and play physically...but they do not have the quality to match us.

Well, Egypt will play tomorrow against Mauritania. We'll be missing some players but it's going to be an easy match anyway I believe. More importantly, Egypt U-23 team will play today in the Beijing Olympics qualifiers against Cote d'Ivoire U-23 in a match of life or death. First leg was in Egypt and ended 1-1. I hope they can do something in Cote d'Ivoire today.

Wow...so much for that motivated performance....complete nonsense really....the positive of this result is that people will stop kissing Vogt's behind...Sure we won....thanks to Kanu....who really is the king....he was actually pretty poor today..but thanks for the goal anyway...really if this had been a draw or a loss (as it very well could have been) all hell would have broken loose. As things stand...we should not have too much trouble qualifying...as long as we can at least keep another clean sheet in Kampala....by the way...I only got to see a portion of the match as the situation with NTA is a joke...I feel sorry for Americans like Bazo who have to pay to get this garbage.

Some players played well...Osaze was very very good today...him and Martins were were the only hard workers today...and for once he managed to keep possession of the ball which has been a problem for him at times....Obi did well...but he should have been more forward...he sank into the holding role...and Olofinjana became more forward...which is a problem since Seyi is completely useless.....we had Okoronkwo play right back..which was a horrific decision for the German manager in his first match..he should not and probaly will not see the NT ever again

Well..that is done and dusted...but I hope Vogts and the players understand that Nigerians are not happy and will not accept this mediocrity.

Egypt beats Mauritania 3-0 thnx to Mohammad Zidan, Hossam Ghaly and Mauritania's defender we were better at every single moment in the game and could win by more goals but Emad Motaeb failed to deliver any way a good game and i hope we could improve more.

Not gonna happen any time soon.
God bless Hasan Shehata

What was the starting line up and formation?

Actually our current team is stronger than the team that won the Nations Cup. Ghaly is in top form, Zidan is in top form, Hosny is in top form - and they all didnt play in the Nations Cup. The only position we need a better player at is Left Back. Rest in Peace Abdulwahab.

Mohamed Abdel Elshafy (Ghazl Elmahala),being from Elmahala,i've been watching Ghazl Elmahala for a quite sometime now and he's really REALLY good,Tarek Elsayed is pretty good too,he might not be a very good defender,but Sayed Mo'wad is neither a good defender nor a national team quality.
Anyway,i think we've got a pretty good team but Shehata has nothing to give them,he's tactically poor as simple as that,his best tactic is probably "Go get them tigers" ! besides his choices are really poor too for example :
Islam Elshater deserves to be called,the guy has been the best right back for the last 2 seasons,seeing Fathy as the one and only right back in the whole squad doesn't look right.
Our national team is shapeless,u can't tell who's playing where,everyone plays the way he likes you could see that we used like 5 formations in one game:4-4-2,4-2-2-2,4-3-1-2,4-1-3-2,4-3-2-1.
He always play Emad up front ahead of many other strikers,such as Zidane or Amr Zaky which is cool,but what's not cool is that he will let him play even if his leg is broken,we've seen him playing Emad even when he is facing massive bad luck with scoring.
If you want more examples,i'll be happy to mention some others,but then i guess we'll have to create a thread about Egyptian soccer as the discussion may take long

Tarek el Said is good in Attacking but he is a very bad defender so u can not rely on him so much unless u r attacking.
Emad always miss a lot of chances (only scores in Zamalek net ) and if anyone have 1/2 his number of chances he got he will score double he is scoring till now. Any way when Mido and Amr Zaki r not injured then Emad will have a long stay on the bench and see what real strikers can do.
Islam el Shater now is not good but Fathi was also bad yesterday also Hasan Shehata is a very bad coach he is coward and only plays 4-4-2 against weak teams.
I

We played with Kanu and Martins at the top, Osaze on the left, Obi Mikel and Olofinjana in the middle and Christian Obodo on the right side. At the back we had Taiwo on the left, Yobo and Afolabi in the middle and Okoronkwo on the right and Ejide was in the goal.

Olu, luckily at 12:00 am over here, I just happend to turn on NTA and the match was on. I remember at around 11am-12pm, I was watching NTA i think it is called Hot shot sports network andd they said they were going to the game. It showed the players coming out and then it just switched to a political campaign going on in Kano. That was really frustrating becuase that wasn't what i was waiting for. I was able to catch the second half and there wasn't anything too impressive. i am happy we were able to win the game but i hope that the team will greatly improve. I hope that we have some friendlies against some big european teams to really test ourselves. We play against teams that even if we don't have a good game, we win and our team is not growing in that way. That is why i am interested in Ghana. They are always having friendlies against teams from everywhere. Not only does it help your team on the pitch, it also helps witht he chemistry of the players which is very important.

Why was Obodo on the right? Isn't he a DM or LM? and why wasn't Odiah/Lamey on the right? Injured/suspended?

To be quite honest with you, i am not too sure why Obodo played on the right wing. He wasn't very effective over there and that is why the coach switched him with Utaka. I think Utaka would have been a better fit for that position. I think the coach was just sort of tinkering around. Luckily, we were able to win the game and that plan didn't back fire. Odiah didn't play because right now he is currently injured and Lamey, i don't really know what the situation is with him. I don't know if he wants to play for us or if he is still waiting for a dutch call up or what.

"African Nations Cup qualifier between Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia in Kinshasa has been postponed after dozens of people died in two days of heavy fighting in the capital. Diplomats expressed fears for Congo's fledgling democracy after hospital officials said more than 100 people were killed. Government forces restored order to Kinshasa late on Friday after routing fighters loyal to defeated presidential candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba, who fled to safety in the South African embassy.

There was no indication from the Confederation of African Football on a new date for today's Group 10 match. Congo lead the table with four points from two games. Ethiopia are one point adrift in third place."

Quite sad.

http://www.canqualifiers.com/group-10.html

Libya won so we're only one point below first place. We need to win vs. Congo which will put us first place.

Cameroon on top and looking good....

Olu and any other Nigerian on SP. I think Berti Vogts has to go.



If he can't beat Uganda, then get rid of him now.

ha..it's extremely late and/or early..and I am still extremely angry. It was not as bad as it sounds though....we were actually the better team...I think one of the mistakes was starting Yakubu in this match. He seems a spent force..and spent most of the match walking around admiring the pitch...you have to realise that the line up was ridiculous it was

Ejide
Taiwo Shittu Afolabi Nwaneri
Yobo
Okonkwo Kaita
Kanu
Yakubu Utaka

This is the worst team I have seen Nigeria field in a competitive match for a long time....Yobo did a decent job in the first half actually...but the bottom line was that we were playing with three holding midfielders and and forward in the midfield...this was never going to work....we were able to control the play and the possession..especially in the first half....and were the better side throughout...but I think the main problem was that there no forward push from midfielders...esp. from Yobo and Okonkwo..as a result of this Kanu was a passenger most of the time..but still...he is the one who created the goal for Utaka (who was easily our best player today)..the defense was decent..except for Nwaneri who was an embarrasment...Taiwo played ok...but he made too many rough tackles (I think Bergi told him to stay back...and hold defensive position...but we REALLY needed him pushing forward today!)...Makinwa (who is the poorest excuse of a striker I have ever seen don the GWG in a competitive match) missed a wide pen net...The penalties were very questionable...esp. the first one...which was a blatant dive..after a small bit of contact...I won't say we were robbed...but a whole stack of money has disappeared from our wallet!!...Kampala is a very difficult place to go..and if there was one game in the group which were not going to win..it was this one...but still questions must be asked of Vogts...why were the Uche brothers left out of the squad....surely Ike would do better than Makinwa..and Kalu would give more going forward than Okonkwo or Kaita....why has Enyeama been dropped from the team and made third choice (really I want an explanation for this)...why is Bergi flying back to Munich tommorrow when the European season is closed and he is needed in Nigeria...and why has he not been able to motivate or improve this team since his arrival


Anyway need to sleep/get ready for my day