Rest assured, almost
Egypt drew as close as any country can get to qualifying for the African Nations Cup. Eric Asomugha sees what more is needed
A 6-0 drubbing of Madagascar in the coastal city of Port Said on Friday has put Egypt in almost certain position to qualify for Tunisia 2004.
Egypt now tops Group 10 with nine points and a 13-goal advantage from four matches in which the team won three and lost one.
Madagascar trails by three points but more important has a poor four-goal deficit from two wins and one loss. The third member of the group, Mauritius, has no points, having lost all three matches.
The last Group 10 match will be played next month between Madagascar and Mauritius, in Madagascar, a crucial encounter that will decide who goes to Tunisia. The mathematics says Madagascar must beat Mauritius by 18 goals to advance. Although stranger things have happened -- bigger results have been registered -- it would be nearly impossible to even conceive such a score. "This will take a miracle to happen. There are upsets in football like other sports but not in this scenario. Only foul play can make this happen, which I doubt very much because national pride is also at stake for Mauritius," Ahmed Hussein, an Egyptian fan, said.
Madagascar is well aware of the uphill task if they were to prevent old-timers Egypt, which has won the African Nations Cup a record four times, from qualifying for the most prestigious football tournament on the continent.
Egypt started its impressive run two weeks earlier at the same venue when they thrashed Mauritius 7-0. On Friday, it took only two minutes after kick-off to show guests Madagascar what was in store when Bashir El-Tabe'i's astounding free kick from 30 metres found the net.
In a completely one-sided match, the Egyptians dictated the pace of a match which had been widely expected to be much tougher following Madagascar's surprise 1-0 defeat of Egypt at home in the first leg.
Two more goals from Ahmed Bilal and one from Celta Vigo's Ahmed "Mido" Hossam put Egypt four goals ahead in the first half.
The pressure continued after the break with only slight resistance from the visitors. Less than 15 minutes into the second half, Bilal scored the fifth goal before adding one more five minutes before time for goal No.6 and his fourth.
Mido who spearheaded the attack with midfield maestro Hazem Emam, was the mastermind behind Bilal's success on goal. And while the Madagascar goalkeeper was on the receiving end, his Egyptian counterpart Nader El-Sayed was more or less a spectator.
Algeria and Nigeria qualified for Tunisia 2004. Senegal was the first country to qualify after beating Lesotho 3-0 in Dakar on 14 June. For Algeria, which has one more match to play, it was an easy ride for them in Group 12, beating Chad and Namibia. Nigeria made a lucky escape to grab a draw against visiting Angola in Group One.
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 26 June - 2 July 2003 (Issue No. 644)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/644/sp3.htm