Elias Achouri’s brace helped the Carthage Eagles defeat Uganda 3-1 in Rabat on Tuesday night, ending Tunisia’s long-standing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) opening-day curse.
In their Group C opening match at the 2025 tournament, the North Africans’ 12-year losing streak in the AFCON finals came to an abrupt halt.
After just ten minutes, Ellyes Skhiri put Tunisia ahead, setting the tone early. Achouri demonstrated Tunisia’s resolve to attack by doubling the lead before halftime and coming back to complete the task just after the hour mark. Denis Omedi gave Uganda a comeback deep into stoppage time, but the match had already been lost.
In the last third, Uganda found it difficult to match Tunisia’s cutting edge even if they had a little more of the ball. With Tanzania in third place and Uganda in last, Tunisia now leads Group C on goal differential, surpassing Nigeria.
Nigeria had to put in more effort than anticipated in Fes before defeating Tanzania 2-1 in their own Group C match. With Akor Adams hitting the woodwork and Victor Osimhen being stunningly denied, the Super Eagles controlled a large portion of the first half.
Alex Iwobi’s inviting cross from a corner was blasted home by Semi Ajayi in the 36th minute, marking the breakthrough. Charles M’Mombwa’s equalizer early in the second half temporarily quiet the Nigerian fans, but Tanzania quickly responded. After another assist from Iwobi, Ademola Lookman gave Nigeria the lead again just 108 seconds later with a thundering left-footed finish.
Tanzania threatened a second equalizer, but Calvin Bassey’s critical interventions and Ibrahim Hamad’s squandered opportunity allowed Nigeria to hold fast. The Super Eagles are now in a strong position ahead of an exciting matchup with Tunisia.
Senegal proved their mettle in Group D action at the Grand Stade de Tanger, defeating Botswana 3-0. The former champions were led by Nicolas Jackson, who scored once in each half. Cherif Ndiaye, a substitute, sealed the points with a late third.
Jackson was a continual threat; after Ismail Jakobs’ cut-back in the 40th minute, he opened the score. Just before the hour, he finished calmly to double the lead. Goitseone Phoko, the goalkeeper for Botswana, made a number of saves to keep the score reasonable while the Bayern Munich striker nearly finished his hat-trick.
In a difficult match characterized by late drama and wasted opportunities, DR Congo defeated Benin earlier in the group. After Benin’s defense faltered and allowed the winger to neatly slot into the corner, Théo Bongonda’s first-half goal proved to be crucial.
Shortly after the restart, Cedric Bakambu believed he had doubled the lead, but VAR disallowed the goal due to offside. Benin created multiple late opportunities as both teams pushed for more, but they were unable to win in regulation time in the finals once more. The outcome made DR Congo’s remarkable winning streak on foreign soil six in a row.
As the group-stage drama continues, focus now shifts to Wednesday’s games: Burkina Faso vs. Equatorial Guinea, Algeria vs. Sudan, Ivory Coast vs. Mozambique, and Cameroon vs. Gabon.
AFCON Matches Today, December 24: Equatorial Guinea vs. Burkina Faso at 1:30 p.m.
Sudan vs. Algeria at 4 p.m.
Mozambique vs. Ivory Coast at 6:30 p.m.
Gabon vs. Cameroon, 9 p.m.
