Translated material
There are only rumors about the revolution
The Grandees of the Dark Continent are regaining their positions
The African Cup taking place in Egypt is approaching its conclusion. The participants in the final match have been determined. The teams of Egypt and Cote d'Ivoire will compete for the main prize. Nigeria and Senegal will compete for third place.The sensational outcome of the continental qualifying tournament for the 2006 World Cup sharply revived interest in the African Cup. Let us remind you that recognized authorities were left out of the World Cup - Nigeria, Cameroon, South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, and the hero of the previous championship, Senegal. Only Tunisia maintained its high reputation. But previously unnoticed Angola, Togo, and only recently gaining muscle, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire earned berths in their feats. Has there been a revolution in African football, or are the results of the qualifying matches just a temporary sensation?
As the tournament showed, rumors of an African revolution turned out to be exaggerated. Angola did not remember anything special and went home immediately after the group stage. The Togolese did not score a single point and only became famous for the scandal in their once friendly family. The head coach of the Togo national team, Stephen Keshi, and the main and only star of the Hawks, Emmanuel Adebayor, quarreled. The latter recently signed a contract with Arsenal and, according to the coach, was thinking more about his debut at the London club. For educational purposes, Keshi kept Emmanuel on the bench, he was offended and said that he would no longer play in the national team. The Togolese have four months left to settle the conflict. Peacekeepers represented by the top officials of the state have already been involved. The Ghanaian national team left a good impression, but “Lone Star” was unable to get out of the most difficult group, where Nigeria, Senegal and Zimbabwe also played.
South Africa and Morocco are experiencing generational change, and their stay in Egypt was also short-lived. But other authorities made it clear that they do not intend to give up their positions. Nigeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Senegal showed that they will be missed at the World Cup.
The Russian championship was also represented at the tournament in Egypt. The players of the Samara “Wings of the Soviets” and the Moscow “Lokomotiv” Armando Baba Adamu and Larry Kingston were very noticeable in the Ghana national team. The latter was somewhat overzealous - he got into a fight with Senegalese Habib Bey and earned a four-match disqualification from official matches. Kingston served one game at the African Cup, and three come at the upcoming World Cup. But whether Larry will go there is a big question. Why include a player who cannot play in three matches?
Teammates of Baba Adamu and Kingston - Bertrand Angbwa and Stefan Bikey - were part of the Cameroon national team, but did not play the first roles there. But the Nigerian team can safely be called the most Russian. Firstly, the “super eagles” are led by former Torpedo defender Augustin Eguavon. Dynamo player Joseph Enakarkhire and army player Chidi Odia play in defense. Finally, in the attack, Peter Odemwingi stands out not only for his relatively light skin, but also for his very decent game, by the way, a citizen of Russia. Why does this young, extraordinary forward play for the French Lille and the Nigerian national team, and not in the Premier League and the Russian national team? This question can be addressed to our trainers. They didn’t see a strong player in the CSKA graduate, but the Nigerians, fellow countrymen of Peter’s father, did not miss the opportunity to play the young striker.
The tournament itself was certainly a success. There were many bright games and beautiful goals. The battle between the national teams of Senegal and Guinea in the quarterfinals will be remembered for a long time. And of course, dramatic penalty shootouts at the same stage in the battles Nigeria - Tunisia and Cameroon - Cote d'Ivoire. Tunisia relinquished its championship credentials in the second penalty shootout with the Nigerians. The first series went well for the Carthage Eagles, but the Super Eagles managed to get out of a hopeless situation. In the second series, even the goalkeepers - 40-year-old Tunisian Ali Boumnijel and his young colleague Vincent Enyeama - approached the point and completed their mission flawlessly. But the mistake of the Tunisian captain Bouazizi turned out to be fatal. Cote d'Ivoire and Cameroon went further in taking penalties. All 11 players from each side approached the point, and everyone was accurate. I had to start the test over again. The leader of the Indomitable Lions, Samuel Eto'o, sent the ball over the crossbar. The elephants' leader Didier Drogba was accurate. Eto'o's sadness knew no bounds. He was reminded of how in the fall he carelessly spoke about his partner Pierre Vaume, who also missed a penalty, which cost Cameroon participation in the 2006 World Cup. “If I had taken this penalty, I would certainly have scored,” Samuel said then. This time he had nothing to say.
All four semi-finalists were worthy of playing in the final. In the match between Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire, the individual skill of Chelsea's Didier Drogba, who dared to volley from outside the penalty area, had an impact - 1:0. The second semi-final was the subject of heated debate. In the last minute of the Egypt-Senegal match, Senegalese Lions midfielder Diomansi Camara was brought down in the Pharaohs' penalty area. The score at that time was 2:1 in favor of the Egyptians. But Cameroonian referee Divini Eweje did not see a violation of the rules, considering that Kamara fell of his own free will. But the judge did not show the Senegalese the obligatory yellow card for simulation. The protests of the Senegalese side were not accepted, and Egypt brought the match to victory. Now in the final the home team will have to meet the most stellar of African teams - the Ivory Coast team.