Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor ended a one-month national team boycott by scoring four goals as Togo sank Swaziland 6-0 in Saturday's 2010 World Cup-Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.
Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor ended a one-month national team boycott by scoring four goals as Togo sank Swaziland 6-0 in Saturday's 2010 World Cup-Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.
The striker told London newspapers he would shun the key Group 11 clash in neutral Accra to protest against poor organisation of a team which defied the odds by reaching the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
But he had a last-minute change of heart and struck once before half time and three times in the second half. Salifou Moustapha and Olufade Akekami also scored for the Sparrowhawks as they spectacularly avenged a 2-1 loss in Lesotho last June.
The result confirmed Zambia as winners of a mini-league reduced to three nations when Eritrea withdrew before it kicked off, but six-point Togo are likely to make the final round as one of the best eight runners-up.
Togo were forced to play in Ghana as they are serving a three-match ban imposed by world governing body Fifa because two Mali footballers were violently assaulted in Lome after a 2008 Nations Cup qualifier.
While the Togolese seem set to survive, 2002 World Cup quarterfinalists Senegal are out after visiting Gambia snatched a dramatic 1-1 draw in a Group 6 thriller, leaving them one point behind group winners Algeria.
Suspect travellers Algeria forced a 0-0 draw in Liberia to finish with 10 points while Gambia (plus three) edged Senegal (plus two) on goal difference after both garnered nine.
However, the Gambian Scorpions take only five points into the runners-up lottery as results against the bottom team do not count and are not guaranteed to be among those who will go into the third-round draw.
Ghana outclassed Lesotho 3-0 in Sekondi thanks to goals from Sulley Muntari, Junior Agogo and Matthew Amoah to top Group 5 on goal difference from Gabon and Libya after the trio finished with 12 points each.
But the Black Stars' joy was diluted by a crowd stampede when supporters forced open the main gate to a 20000-seat stadium that was already greatly overcrowded. A stadium official claimed about 15 people had been injured, but denied reports that there had been two deaths.
Gabon finished runners-up after defeating Libya 1-0 in Libreville and should make the cut.
There was an inevitable conclusion to Group 7 as Ivory Coast outclassed Madagascar 3-0 in Abidjan to finish on top. But Mozambique were surprise runners-up after a 1-0 win in Botswana. - Sapa-AFP
four for adebayor
Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor ended a one-month national team boycott by scoring four goals as Togo sank Swaziland 6-0 in Saturday's 2010 World Cup-Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.
Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor ended a one-month national team boycott by scoring four goals as Togo sank Swaziland 6-0 in Saturday's 2010 World Cup-Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.
The striker told London newspapers he would shun the key Group 11 clash in neutral Accra to protest against poor organisation of a team which defied the odds by reaching the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
But he had a last-minute change of heart and struck once before half time and three times in the second half. Salifou Moustapha and Olufade Akekami also scored for the Sparrowhawks as they spectacularly avenged a 2-1 loss in Lesotho last June.
The result confirmed Zambia as winners of a mini-league reduced to three nations when Eritrea withdrew before it kicked off, but six-point Togo are likely to make the final round as one of the best eight runners-up.
Togo were forced to play in Ghana as they are serving a three-match ban imposed by world governing body Fifa because two Mali footballers were violently assaulted in Lome after a 2008 Nations Cup qualifier.
While the Togolese seem set to survive, 2002 World Cup quarterfinalists Senegal are out after visiting Gambia snatched a dramatic 1-1 draw in a Group 6 thriller, leaving them one point behind group winners Algeria.
Suspect travellers Algeria forced a 0-0 draw in Liberia to finish with 10 points while Gambia (plus three) edged Senegal (plus two) on goal difference after both garnered nine.
However, the Gambian Scorpions take only five points into the runners-up lottery as results against the bottom team do not count and are not guaranteed to be among those who will go into the third-round draw.
Ghana outclassed Lesotho 3-0 in Sekondi thanks to goals from Sulley Muntari, Junior Agogo and Matthew Amoah to top Group 5 on goal difference from Gabon and Libya after the trio finished with 12 points each.
But the Black Stars' joy was diluted by a crowd stampede when supporters forced open the main gate to a 20000-seat stadium that was already greatly overcrowded. A stadium official claimed about 15 people had been injured, but denied reports that there had been two deaths.
Gabon finished runners-up after defeating Libya 1-0 in Libreville and should make the cut.
There was an inevitable conclusion to Group 7 as Ivory Coast outclassed Madagascar 3-0 in Abidjan to finish on top. But Mozambique were surprise runners-up after a 1-0 win in Botswana. - Sapa-AFP
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