Ivory Coast Maintains Unbeaten Run in World Cup Qualifiers as Away Teams Display Resilience

The Ivory Coast continued their impressive run in World Cup qualifying with a 2-0 victory over the Gambia on Monday. They are now at the top of Group F, tied with Gabon on six points. Kenya also secured a victory on the road against the Seychelles, winning 5-0. Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Madagascar also won their away matches. Only the group winners advance to the 2026 finals in Canada, Mexico, and the US, with the four best placed runners-up getting a chance for a berth via two playoff tournaments.

In Group E, Morocco will visit Tanzania on Tuesday in their first qualifier. Morocco was a semi-finalist at the last World Cup in Qatar last year. The Seychelles were another country banned from using their home stadia due to unfit international facilities.

Michael Olunga scored twice in six minutes for Kenya as they went on an offensive against the Seychelles. In addition to Olunga’s goals, Kenya’s team had a total of five goals scored by different players throughout the game. Equatorial Guinea’s captain Emilio Nsue netted the only goal in their match against Liberia despite being reduced to 10 men after a red card was issued to one of their players. Guinea Bissau’s win against Djibouti was secured by Swiss-based striker Mauro Rodrigues who scored one of his team’s three goals from open play. Madagascar won 3-0 against Chad with all three goals being scored from set pieces: two penalties and one free kick