In other matches in the 2025 African Cup of Nations, Cameroon and Ivory Coast draw 1-1, while Sudan defeats Equatorial Guinea.
Published December 28, 2025
Mozambique breathed new life into their campaign with a historic first victory in the African Cup of Nations, defeating Gabon 3-2 in Agadir. Meanwhile, Algeria narrowly defeated Burkina Faso to advance to the last 16 of AFCON.
Mozambique, who lost to Ivory Coast in the opening game of the competition, scored twice before half-time in Sunday’s Group F match, with Faizal Bangal scoring a header and Geny Katamo scoring from the penalty spot.
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Former Arsenal and Chelsea forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang grabbed a goal before the break, but despite Diogo Kalira regaining a two-goal cushion and Alex Mouketu-Musonda grabbing one, his 17th try was ultimately enough for Mozambique to seal their first win of the competition.
Elsewhere in the group, defending champions Ivory Coast took the lead after just five minutes before Cameroon equalized in Sunday’s heavyweight showdown.
Amad Diallo scored his second consecutive goal in the 51st minute to put Ivorians ahead, but full-back Junior Chamadeu scored Cameroon’s equalizer in the 56th minute with the help of a deflection at the Grande Stade Marrakech.
The eight-time AFCON champions currently share the top spot in Group F with four points, followed by Mozambique with three points.
Gabon will need to win their final group match to have a chance to advance to the finals as one of the top three teams.
Algeria defeated Burkina Faso 1-0 thanks to Riyad Mahrez’s penalty kick, advancing to the last 16.
Captain Mahrez scored from the spot midway through the first half at Rabat’s Moulay El Hassan Stadium on Sunday, and Algeria continued to hang in there and prevail in a fierce battle with the Burkinabe side.
The penalty that decided the match was awarded when Manchester City’s Rayan Ait Nouri was tied up.
Mahrez made no mistake with his kick in the 23rd minute, taking his tally of goals in the Nations Cup to three after scoring the opening two in the 3-0 win over Sudan. The former Leicester City and Manchester City winger is playing in his sixth AFCON and has scored nine goals in the competition, an Algerian record.
Hearts striker Pierre Landry Kabore came close to equalizing for Burkina Faso with a header from a corner, and Mahrez teed up Mohamed Amoula, but goalkeeper Hervé Coffi saved after an Algerian breakthrough in first-half stoppage time.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Ibrahim Maza failed to capitalize on two good chances in the second half, while substitute Georgi Minungu struck and Burkina Faso’s attempts to equalize failed.
Algeria, who were African champions in 1990 and 2019, have a maximum of six points after two games in Group E and are yet to concede a goal, with Vladimir Petkovic’s side living up to expectations as one of the favorites to win the tournament.
Burkina Faso and Sudan are next with three points each and will face off in the final group game on Wednesday. That means Algeria are guaranteed a top-two finish even if they lose their final match against Equatorial Guinea, which is meaningless at the moment.
Sudan improved their chances of progressing to the African Cup of Nations finals with a 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea on Sunday thanks to a Saul Coco own goal.
Unfortunately, Torino centre-back Coco saw the ball deflect away from him and into the net as teammate Luis Asue tried to clear a Sudanese free-kick in the 74th minute in Casablanca.
Sudan won the 1970 African Cup of Nations, but this was only their second victory in 18 matches in six appearances in the tournament since then.
