Guinea-Bissau are playing in their first Africa Cup of Nations finals

Debutants and shock qualifiers Guinea-Bissau stunned hosts Gabon by pulling off a 1-1 draw in the opening match of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.

Juary Soares scored the equaliser for the Wild Dogs with a diving header from a free-kick in the 90th minute.

Gabon had taken the lead on 52 minutes when superstar Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang turned in Denis Bouanga's cross-shot.

Home fans jeered loudly at the end, making their discontent evident.

But the draw was no more than a spirited Guinea-Bissau side deserved as they frustrated their opponents throughout and took their chance to continue what has been a fairytale run in getting to the finals.

Few predicted they would take anything from their group games at the tournament but they arguably looked the more dangerous side in a game that only livened up after half-time.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang looks disappointed as he leaves the pitch

While Aubaemyang showed his predatory instincts to finish off Bouanga's ball across the face of the box, the Dortmund striker was less clinical when he volleyed over on 69 minutes.

It would have doubled Gabon's lead and might have ended Guinea-Bissau's resistance. Instead, they fought back and began to impose themselves on the game.

A clear chance came on 83 minutes but substitute Frederic Mendy headed straight at goalkeeper Didier Ovono and it seemed they would have to be content with a brave defeat.

But when they won another free-kick, Soares connected brilliantly to send his side into raptures.

In the group's later game, Burkina Faso drew 1-1 with Cameroon.

Gutsy Guinea-Bissau

After going 1-0 down to the hosts, Guinea-Bissaumight have folded. But the tournament debutants continued to plug away and, if they show the same grit and determination, they may pull off a few more surprises.

They pressed high, snapped into their tackles and former Everton youth player Junior Francisco particularly caught the eye on his first cap, prowling the midfield and breaking up play effectively.

Toni Silva, once at Liverpool, also impressed, showing glimpses of skill and creativity - if he grows in confidence he could be a key figure for the team.

Hosts Gabon must improve

Largely pedestrian, perhaps suffering from nerves, but most definitely below the level of performance the home crowd - and manager Jose Antonio Camacho - expect of them.

Having a world-class striker in Aubemayang will only get Gabon so far. While he was not at his very best, service to him was poor. And Juventus midfielder Mario Lemina was particularly disappointing.

The moment that summed up the Panthers perfectly came when Merlin Tandjigora swiped at a clearance, completely missed the ball and clattered Francisco Junior. So wild and inept it was comical. Gabon need to find their timing and rhythm - fast.

What the managers said

Guinea Bissau coach Baciro Cande: "We are very, very happy. Now we have the motivation to go as far as possible."

Gabon coach Jose Antonio Camacho: "It's very difficult to win the first match in these tournaments. For the next match we have to fight tooth and nail."</s>From kick-off on 14 January to the final on 5 February, The Africa Report will be bringing you all the latest news and views from this year's Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Gabon.

When President Ali Bongo pushed in 2015 for Gabon to host the next Afcon, he is unlikely to have foreseen a build-up quite like this.



Less than six months ago the National Assembly in Libreville was on fire following a disputed election in which the incumbent won by a mere 6,000 votes; supporters of rival Jean Ping were being shot in the street; social media was blocked; and foreign journalists were barred from entering the country. The Bongo family’s 50-year rule over the country appeared under critical threat. This was not a time to welcome the continent for a festival of football.

The European Union election observation mission pointed to an “obvious anomaly” in the results: in Haut-Ogooué province, Bongo officially won 95% of the vote from 99% turnout. In Gabon's eight other provinces, turnout averaged just 48%. After the Constitutional Court upheld the result in September, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was still concerned enough to look for alternative options – it asked Morocco to host the tournament if conditions in Gabon deteriorated.

Ghana and Algeria could be forgiven a degree of schadenfreude: both countries had presented exceptionally strong bids to host Afcon 2017 and were surprised to lose out to the Gabonese at an often farcical CAF meeting in Cairo two years ago. Algerian Football Federation President, Mohamed Raouraoua, a long-time rival to CAF President Issa Hayatou, openly questioned the validity of the decision. Hayatou was surely confident of a quiet tournament after the chaos of Libya’s 2013 withdrawal and Morocco refusing to host in 2015. Events would prove him wrong.

While the political climate in Gabon has since calmed, there is no doubt the tournament is still coming at a difficult juncture for the government.

The reported $700m cost, with two new stadiums completed in Port-Gentil and isolated Oyem, stands in stark contrast to fresh public spending cuts announced last October as oil revenue continues to fall. The leaked Local Organising Committee (LOC) budget revealed staggering commission fees of $60m and suspiciously high outlay on infrastructure which was meant to have been finished in time for the 2012 tournament. No expense has been spared. The government was forced to deny paying Lionel Messi $3.5m to attend the stone-laying ceremony at the Port-Gentil venue two years ago.

Despite hosting two major tournaments in the past five years, there is still no road between Libreville and Port-Gentil; and in the centre of Libreville, the Stade Omnisport sits unfinished on the site of the former Stade Omar Bongo. Construction began in 2010.

There have been calls for a boycott, but not yet from the official opposition with sway on the coast. Ping is expected to give a speech on the opening day of the tournament. The four stadiums are each parked over 10km outside of each host city, which organisers may hope will forestall protests or crowd trouble.

Either way, the genuine enthusiasm when Gabon co-hosted Afcon with Equatorial Guinea in 2012 is unlikely to be replicated amidst economic stress and simmering discontent. A strong run by Les Panthères, led by talismanic striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, may change that. They have a favourable draw and should make the quarter-finals at the very least. CAF doesn’t like television coverage of empty stadiums and the Gabonese are doing their best to comply, handing out free tickets to schools and encouraging businesses to buy up blocks for their employees.

What those fans will witness is hard to predict. With four different winners since 2010, this is now a competition too close to call. Gone are the days of one-country domination, most recently by Cameroon and Egypt. That reflects both a general rise in standards but also the absence of a truly great generation in any one country.

Côte d’Ivoire, who ended their long wait for another title in 2015, arrive as favourites, alongside Algeria and a promising Senegal. Ghana will be hoping to erase memories of losing on penalties in Malabo two years ago. Nigeria again missed out on qualification, as did South Africa, who had shown signs of youthful advance in 2015. But seven-time winners Egypt are back to contest their first Afcon in seven years. Other subplots include a passionate Uganda side, underdog debutants Guinea-Bissau and Zimbabwe succeeding in spite of organisational chaos at home.

Injuries and withdrawals notwithstanding, the 60th anniversary of the Africa Cup of Nations will boast some of the continent’s leading players. While empty stadiums and protests may yet become the abiding memory of a tournament on the brink of discredit, you can count on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Riyad Mahrez, Sadio Mane and Andre Ayew to provide a few vignettes of their own before the close.</s>The Borussia Dortmund striker is the poster boy for an Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) tournament in a country that has undergone political turmoil since disputed elections in August 2016.

Incumbent president Ali Bongo was declared the winner of the vote. But his rival, Jean Ping, contested the result.

There were at least three deaths and more than 800 arrests in the aftermath of the poll. Opposition activists have urged the Gabonese people to boycott the tournament while Bongo has called for the Cup of Nations to be a time for "joy, coming together and shared happiness".

The domestic wranglings of Bongo and Ping will be of little concern to the supporters flooding into the Gabonese cities of Port Gentil, Franceville and Oyem to follow their sides.

The stadium in Libreville – which will also be the venue for the final on 5 February - is likely to be packed for the first match of the 31st edition of the Cup of Nations. The bars and restaurants in the city will be throbbing with life, too. Gabon has never been further than the last eight in five visits to the Cup of Nations.

Aubameyang, 27 and with 21 goals to his credit in 52 appearances, has the responsibility of helping his teammates eclipse those quarter-final highs.

On the eve of the tournament Gabon coach, Jose Antonio Camacho, epitomised the skipper’s importance to the national cause.

"Pierre is one of the best players in the world. Gabon are lucky to have him,” he said. "It will be difficult for Gabon to go far if Aubameyang is not at his best."

The stage then seems set for apotheosis or, perhaps, apocalypse. Gabon’s opponents Guinea-Bissau – nicknamed the Wild Dogs – are feasting on their first qualification for the tournament.

Though Baciro Cande's team have not played a competitive match in four months, they’re not mutts. They emerged from a qualifying group featuring Congo, Zambia and Kenya.

"Guinea-Bissau have nothing to lose and everything to win,” added Camacho. “For us it is the opposite."</s>Debutantes Guinea-Bissau stunned hosts of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Gabon after holding them to a surprise 1-1 draw in the opening game of the tournament on Saturday in Libreville.

Juary Soares was the hero for Guinea-Bissau as he grabbed a 90th minute equaliser to make sure both teams shared the spoils.

Borussia Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the first goal of the tournament after getting on the score sheet in the 53rd minute.

Aubameyang's goal means he has now been involved in eight of Gabon's last 11 AFCON goals.

Gabon will hope to bounce back from the opening day disappointment when they face Burkina Faso on Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, Guinea-Bissau will face Cameroon.

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>Gabon pin hopes on Aubameyang as Cup of Nations begins

The Africa Cup of Nations gets underway in Gabon on Saturday afternoon as the hosts, spearheaded by the brilliant Pierre-Emerick Aubemayang, face minnows Guinea-Bissau in the tournament’s opening game in Libreville.

The Panthers, coached by veteran Spaniard Jose Antonio Camacho, are looking to the French-born Borussia Dortmund striker to lead their bid to win the continental title for the first time, 60 years on from the inaugural Cup of Nations.

“Pierre is one of the best players in the world. Gabon are lucky to have him,” Camacho admitted at a press conference on Friday in the Gabonese capital as he underlined the importance of the 27-year-old 2015 African player of the year to his team’s cause.

“It will be difficult for Gabon to go far if Aubameyang is not at his best.”

Guinea-Bissau caused a sensation when they qualified for the finals for the first time but while the side known as the ‘wild dogs’ will be desperate to seize their opportunity on the international stage, they could also be forgiven for feeling rather rusty.

After all, Baciro Cande’s team have not played a competitive match in four months.

“Guinea-Bissau have nothing to lose and everything to win. For us it is the opposite,” warned Camacho.

Saturday’s opening match at the Stade de l’Amitie, where Zambia beat the Ivory Coast in the 2012 final, kicks off at 1600GMT and will be followed by a meeting of the other two teams in Group A, Cameroon and Burkina Faso, at the same venue at 1900GMT.

Cameroon have won the trophy four times but come into this year’s Cup of Nations with arguably their weakest ever squad.

That is after several leading players, notably Liverpool defender Joel Matip and Schalke striker Eric Choupo-Moting, rejected call-ups from coach Hugo Broos to focus on their club careers.

And on Friday Broos complained that it might be time for the biennial tournament to be moved to a different period of the year.

“Times are changing. Before, certain players were happy to come and play for Cameroon,” said the Belgian.

“Now some clubs put pressure on their players. Those who are coming to the ends of their contracts prefer to stay in Europe in order to negotiate better deals.

“I think the Cup of Nations needs to be played at a different time of the year. It doesn’t come around at a good time.”

Burkina Faso, the 2013 runners-up coached by the Portuguese Paulo Duarte, will hope to take advantage of their opponents’ troubled build-up.

The build-up to this Cup of Nations has been played out to a backdrop of social and political tension in the central African country following President Ali Bongo’s contested election win last year.

And supporters of Bongo’s rival Jean Ping are planning to stage a demonstration in Libreville on Saturday at the same time as the opening ceremony which will precede the first two games.

Unprecedented violence following last August’s election in the relatively prosperous country of 1.8 million people led to around a thousand arrests and at least five deaths.

Meanwhile, opposition calls to boycott the tournament altogether have come from what Bongo called “a small minority who are forgetting this is a sporting competition” as he inaugurated the new venues in Port-Gentil and Oyem earlier this week.

While many in Gabon have more pressing concerns than the Cup of Nations due to the economic difficulties being experienced in the country, organisers have put half a million tickets on sale for prices ranging from 500 to 40,000 CFA francs ($0.81 to $65).

Matches in the 16-team tournament are also being staged in Franceville in the interior, where the Algeria of newly-crowned African player of the year Riyad Mahrez meet Zimbabwe and Tunisia take on Senegal in Group B on Sunday.

Reigning champions Ivory Coast begin their defence of the trophy against Togo in Group C on Monday.

The post Gabon pin hopes on Aubameyang as Cup of Nations begins appeared first on Vanguard News.

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>There are a number of potential winners of the 2017 African Cup of Nations, which will be played against a backdrop of tension in Gabon. The top-ranked team in Africa are among the list of those in the field for the finals of the 2017 African Nations Cup who have yet to win the trophy.

Start the conversation, or Read more at World Soccer.</s>Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will be the player everyone will look to as hosts Gabon begin their Africa Cup of Nations quest with a match against Guinea-Bissau on Saturday.

Aubameyang is the undoubted star of the Gabon team and having suffered disappointment when the Borussia Dortmund striker missed a crucial penalty in a shootout the last time his country hosted the Afcon, there is a lot for the forward to prove.

While a win over surprise qualifiers Guinea-Bissau should come Gabon's way, what will decide how far the hosts go this year will be decided by Aubameyang's form.

Going by his club statistics, the signs are good, with the striker already scoring 20 goals in 22 matches this season. If Aubameyang is able to carry that goalscoring threat to the Africa Cup of Nations as well, Gabon will go a long way.

"I think it is a really important challenge," Aubameyang told CNN. "I think it is an opportunity for our country to win this trophy for the first time.

"I think we have a good team, young players but talented players, we know it will be hard but we are at home and I think it is an opportunity to take the trophy this year."

Guinea-Bissau will want to show they are not just here to make up the numbers. Having achieved their dream of qualifying for the biennial tournament, Guinea-Bissau's target will be to make more history.

"I believe the talking is now over and the moment we have been anxiously waiting for has arrived," Gabon head coach Baciro Cande told SuperSport. "It's a great moment for my players and the entire nation getting the honour to play the first match in the Afcon 2017 against hosts Gabon.

"A lot of people see us as underdogs considering it's our first time, but that doesn't worry us because I believe the same way we surprised everyone by qualifying for Afcon is the same way we will upset them once again in Gabon," a buoyant Cande told supersport.com.

"Gabon is a good side with great individual players like Aubameyang but they should prepare for a tough day in the office as we are going for a win in our first game which is important so that we can have hopes in the group."

The opening match of the 2017 Afcon is set to begin at 9.30pm IST (4pm GMT, 11am ET).</s>The 31st Africa Cup of Nations, hosted in the oil-rich west African country Gabon, is set to be wide open given the international retirement of many leading African footballers.

Without the participation of Ivoirians Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure or Ghanaians Sulley Muntari and Kevin-Prince Boateng, and combined with the surprising failures of Nigeria and South Africa to qualify, the tournament should field plenty of surprises once it kicks off on January 14.

Here’s a guide to the Cup, with teams listed in order of FIFA ranking:

Last in tournament: 2015 (group stage); best finish: 2002 (Runner up)

Analysis: Manager Aliou Cissé will rely heavily on his captain, West Ham’s Cheikhou Kouyate, to anchor the spine of his defense.

Analysis: The tournament favorite will miss the experienced Toure brothers, but will feel the absence of Gervinho the most. The former Arsenal and Roma striker, who has 20 career goals for his country, is out for six months after knee surgery.

Analysis: AS Roma’s Salah — nicknamed the “Egyptian Messi” — will be bolstered by a solid midfield featuring Elmohamady and Arsenal’s Mohamed Elneny. The seven-time champion last won the tournament with a foreign-born manager in 1959, under Hungarian Pál Titkos. Argentine Héctor Cúper will try to match that feat for the Pharaohs.

Analysis: Unlike other top teams in the Cup, Tunisia fields mostly local leaguers — which could prove to be a blessing for team chemistry under 70-year-old Polish coach Henryk Kasperczak.

Analysis: Algeria boasts the punishing trio of marksmen Soudani and Slimani alongside creative ace Riyad Mahrez, the English Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year. The squad fields European club talent at every position.

Analysis: French-born players Bakambu of Villarreal and Yannick Bolasie of Everton will attempt to lead the Leopards through a difficult group featuring Morocco, Ivory Coast and Togo.

Last finish: 2015 (group stage); best finish: 2013 (runner up)

Top qualification scorers: Six players with one goal each

Analysis: For a repeat finals appearance, Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte must get more out of promising Chelsea striker Bertrand Traore, on loan at Ajax. The 21- year-old has just three goals in 30 caps.

Analysis: Asamoah Gyan could break the 100-cap barrier in the tournament and remains a threat up front alongside the Ayew brothers, Andre and Jordan. A talented back line includes the experienced Harrison Afful, who plays in the MLS with Columbus Crew and Leicester’s Daniel Amartey.

Analysis: French manager Hervé Renard, who managed Zambia and the Ivory Coast to African Cup titles, will handle a team of seven Ligue 1 professionals, but isn’t taking Ajax’s Hakim Ziyech. Youssef El-Arabi will be relied upon for goals.

Top qualification scorers: Vincent Aboubakar (2 goals), five players with one goal each.

Analysis: Although coach Hugo Broos unsuccessfully pleaded with Liverpool center-back Joel Matip to rejoin the side, he still fields a team brimming with experience from Brazil 2014. Proven goal scorer Vincent Aboubakar is chief among them.

Analysis: French legend Alain Giresse is in his second term coaching the Eagles, following a third-place finish in 2013. Monaco’s promising 21-year-old Adama Traore could shine.

Top qualification scorers: Five with one goal each

Analysis: The first-time qualifier is the biggest outsider in the tournament, at average odds of 200-1. Escaping the group, which includes hosts Gabon and Cameroon, will be a stretch.

Top qualification scorers: Six with one goal each

Analysis: Finishing runner-up in 1978 was the sporting peak of Idi Amin’s brutal reign. Although he was deposed a year later, the country endured a 39-year footballing drought until now. The Cranes will have to go some to get past Ghana and Egypt in their group, however.

Top qualification scorers: Five with one goal each

Analysis: It’s been seven years since Togo’s bus was horrifically ambushed traveling to the African Cup in Angola. Adebayor, who then briefly retired from national duty, is without a club, but available for the Sparrow Hawks. The 32-year-old has 31 goals in 66 appearances for Togo.

Analysis: The Warriors are the second-biggest outsiders in the tournament at 100-1 odds. Coach Callisto Pasuwa follows Brazilian José Claudinei, whose lack of payment from the Zimbabwean Football Association sparked an expulsion by FIFA from 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

Analysis: Never mind the world ranking, host Gabon has a good shot at going far thanks to its modest group (Guinea-Bissau, Cameroon, Burkina Faso), plus the 2015 African Footballer of the Year Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The pacey 27-year-old is averaging nearly a goal per match with Borussia Dortmund.</s>The Africa Cup of Nations kicks off later this evening in Gabon and it's time for some deep questions. I think.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Daily Monitor.</s>Gabon held 1-1 by Guinea-Bissau in Africa Cup of Nations opener

Juary Soares grabbed a dramatic late equaliser for debutants Guinea-Bissau as they recovered from a Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang strike to hold hosts Gabon to a 1-1 draw in the Africa Cup of Nations opening game.

Gabon appeared to be heading for the victory in Saturday’s Group A curtain-raiser after Borussia Dortmund striker Aubameyang turned the ball in from close range seven minutes into the second half at the Stade de l’Amitie in the capital Libreville.

However, Soares headed home in the 90th minute to earn Guinea-Bissau a memorable point in their first ever match at the continental finals.

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The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations association football tournament begins in Gabon.