Africa Cup of Nations Wrap Up (and Goals) 1.30.08

No real drama in Group C today, with Cameroon waltzing past Sudan 3-0 and Egypt and Zambia playing out a 1-1 draw. There was a bit of history though, with Samuel Eto’o becoming the Africa Cup of Nations all-time top scorer with 15, and later 16, goals.

Cameroon 3-0 Sudan

Samuel Eto’o got his 15th Africa Cup of Nations goal from the penalty spot, Ali Khidar was unlucky to get “credited” with an own goal when a desparate Hamouda Bashir clearance under pressure from Eto’o hit Khidar in the back and went in. Eto’o scored his second of the game and his 16th ever Africa Cup of Nations goal when he ran onto a throughball in injury time and calmly slotted home to win 3-0. Cameroon knew a win was enough to make the quarter-finals, and so they finish second in Group C.

Laurie LiveBlogged this one, and here’s her recap of what happened:

Cameroon deserved the win, but perhaps not the winning margin. They were helped out by a penalty that could have gone either way, an own goal, and a Sudanese team that had difficulty shooting on target. On the other hand, they have a huge asset in Samuel Eto’o, who could make life difficult for the team they face in the quarterfinals.

Sudan didn’t play horribly, especially in the second half, and they deserved to finish the tournament with something better than being outscored 9-0. But there were here for the first time in 32 years, which is an accomplishment in itself. With luck they’ll be back in two years’ time.

Egypt 1-1 Zambia

Egypt needed just a draw to top Group C, while Zambia needed either a big win or a draw and a Cameroon slip-up. Egypt were the dominant team and Zambia were largely restricted to taking potshots at keeper El-Hadary from outside the box.

Amr Zaky put Egypt ahead in the first hald with a well taken left footed volley, and the team looked composed and classy for the most part. They even had the luxury of subbing out the talents of Zaky and captain Ahmed Hassan the equally skilled Mohamed Zidan and Mohamed Aboutreika with 30 minutes to go. The Pharaohs are not lacking attacker.

But though Zambia never looked comfortable at the back, they always looked lively going forward. Captain Chris Katongo got his team a respectable draw when he cut inside and struck at the near post with just three minutes to go, but with Cameroon beating Sudan it wasn’t enough to qualify. Egypt finish on top of Group C, but Zambia go home with heads held high.

(Goals via 101 Great Goals)