Like S/Africa and Cape Verde Islands, Angola and Morocco too fail to produce goals in AFCON 2013 opening day
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| Angola's forward Geraldo (R) vies with Morocco's midfielder Nordin Amrabat during the Morocco vs Angola CAN2013 football match at Soccer City in Soweto on January 19, 2013. AFP PHOTO / ALEXANDER JOE |
After host South Africa played an unimpressive goalless draw against new comers Cape Verde Islands at the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday, Jan. 19, Angola versus Morocco also failed to produce goals in Group A opener.
The Blue sharks of Cape Verde who qualified to the tournament with a shocking 3-2 win over the indomitable lions of Cameroon, ensured the host, Bafana Bafana of South Africa are held in a rather disappointing fashion.
Angola, the 2010 AFCON host also ensured a much experienced Morocco side did not get away with all three points in their first ever clash at this stage, the continent's biggest football championship.
Host South Africa, Cape Verde, Angola, and morocco are all on one point each with two more games to determine the two places (1st and 2nd) for the quarter-finals.
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| The 94, 700 capacity Soccer City Stadium, also known as The Calabash will host the opening and closing (final) matches of AFCON 2013 (Photo Credit: Marcello Casal Jr/ABr) |
South Africa only won the right to host the 29th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2013) awarded by the Confederation of African
Football [CAF] after Libya was deemed
an unsuitable venue due to the civil unrest in that country.
In May 2010, CAF, Africa's football governing body, decided to switch the timing of the AFCON from even to odd years beginning this 2013 competition.
The move is meant to avoid holding the biennial competition just
months before the quadrennial World Cup which some blame for the
poor showing of African teams on the world stage.
Written by Modou S. Joof
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