Madagascar reached its first African Cup of Nations on Tuesday, also becoming the first team to qualify for next year’s continental championship.
Senegal and Egypt soon sealed their spots as well, despite playing without injured stars Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah.
This was Madagascar’s 20th attempt at qualifying for the African Cup. After nearly 50 years of failures, the island nation finally succeeded courtesy of Njiva Rakotoharimalala’s goal, which gave Madagascar a 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea at home in Antananarivo. The team won three of its first four qualifiers and held Senegal to a 2-2 draw in the other.
Madagascar was one of four teams to make it through Tuesday to an expanded Cup of Nations, which will have 24 teams next year, up from the usual 16. The tournament is supposed to be hosted by Cameroon next June and July but could still be moved because of poor preparations and an uncertain security situation in that country.
Cameroon qualifies automatically as host even if the tournament is ultimately taken away from it. The remaining 19 places will be decided in the final two rounds of qualifiers in November and March.
The absence of Mane for Senegal and Salah for Egypt was quickly forgotten as they also qualified. Senegal went through alongside Madagascar in Group A after Sidy Sarr’s late header secured a 1-0 win in Sudan. Sarr’s 86th-minute goal was his first for his country. Liverpool forward Mane didn’t play after fracturing a bone in his left hand in the home game against Sudan on Saturday.
Salah was also missing for Egypt after getting injured last week in a 4-1 win over Swaziland. Without him, the Egyptians won 2-0 in Swaziland with goals in each half by Ahmed Hegazi and Marwan Mohsen.
Tunisia also booked a place alongside Egypt from Group J with a 2-1 victory in Niger.
