Nigeria gets winning start

Ghana, Morocco draw 0-0 at African Nations Cup

SIKASSO, Mali (Reuters) -- Sleeveless shirts and spectacular backflips were the main talking points at the African Nations Cup on Monday after the day's four games produced one measly goal between them.

Nigerian striker Julius Aghahowa was the only man to hit the back of the net as Nigeria -- who face England and Argentina in the first round of the World Cup -- beat Algeria 1-0 in Bamako to go top of group A.

But the Ukraine-based Aghahowa, who cut inside three defenders and fired a low shot inside the post, raised an even bigger cheer with his goal celebration -- five perfectly executed backflips.

And while he did a passable impression of an Olympic gymnast, Cameroon's players admitted they could have been mistaken for basketball players after taking the field on Sunday wearing trend-setting sleeveless shirts.

The Indomitable Lions, who produced an unmemorable performance in their 1-0 win over the Democratic Republic of Congo, admitted that most comments had been centered on the shirts which they said were specially designed by team suppliers Puma for the sub-Saharan heat of the Nations Cup.

"They look like basketball shirts but they were perfect for us in this weather," said Patrick Suffoe.

"I don't know about the World Cup, I don't know what FIFA think about them. It's a special shirt for a special team."

Zambia and Tunisia, Ghana and Morocco and Ivory Coast and Togo all played out goalless draws, leaving the overall goal tally for the tournament at five from eight games.

Despite the lack of goals, Monday produced some exciting play.

Nigeria, runners-up in the competition they co-hosted with Ghana two years ago, put on a stylish display and should have won by more.

Ivory Coast, determined to avoid a repeat of their first round elimination which led to a humiliating one-week stay in a military camp in 2000, also created plenty of chances but were foiled by Togo goalkeeper Kossi Agassa, who plays his club football in Abidjan with Africa Sports.

Ibrahim Bakayoko, who has averaged a goal a game for the Elephants over the last two years, was the biggest victim, seeing three good efforts saved by Agassa in a lively derby played in front of noisy Ivorian fans who crossed the nearby border in a convoy of buses.

Bakayoko, the former Montpellier and Everton striker now based with Marseille, was among the players detained for a week in a military camp and forced to frog march and attend lectures on patriotism following the early exit last time.

Tunisia -- who rarely get involved in goal gluts -- and Zambia also threw up plenty of chances in their group D game in Bamako but both lacked composure in front of goal.

Ghana and Morocco left group B with no goals at all from two games after their match in Segou. Poor finishing denied a meager crowd a goal to enjoy at the Amary Ngaou stadium as the two sides struggled on a bumpy pitch.

Morocco had a bright spell midway through the first half when they came close with four chances inside two minutes while Ghana periodically burst through into goal scoring positions but failed with the final touch.

S. Africa's Bartlett hopes to be fit for Ghana match

SEGOU -- South African captain Shaun Bartlett is hopeful he will recover from a calf injury in time to play for his country in their next African Nations Cup match on Thursday.

Bartlett, who plays for English premier league club Charlton Athletic, went off injured after just 17 minutes of South Africa's opening group B match against Burkina Faso on Sunday, which ended in a goalless draw.

South Africa's leading goal scorer did not train on Monday and said he only had a 50 percent chance of playing against Ghana in the next match at Segou.

"We'll be working on the treatment table and I'm really hoping to be ready. But we have to wait and see," said Bartlett.

The 29-year-old striker was a reluctant participant at the Nations Cup, claiming he had been promised he would be allowed to stay at his English club.

But the South African Football Association sought the intervention of FIFA to persuade Bartlett to play and he was also given a deadline by his club manager Alan Curbishley.

Asked what his manager's reaction would be to his injury, Bartlett said: "Naturally I think he'll be concerned but injuries happen in football. It's not something you go out to achieve or something you can always guard against."

Bartlett's next match will be his 60th cap for South Africa, for whom he has scored 24 goals including several vital strikes in a successful World Cup qualifying campaign.

He was also the leading goalscorer at the last African Nations Cup two years, co-hosted by Ghana and Nigeria.

Burkina Faso confident of quarterfinal place

SEGOU, Mali -- Burkina Faso were basking in the glory of a surprise 0-0 draw against World Cup finalists South Africa on Monday and could now go on to a place in the African Nations Cup quarter-finals, according to their captain.

Burkina Faso were considered the minnows of group B before the start of the tournament, despite making a fourth successive appearance in the finals. But their goalless draw against South Africa in Segou on Sunday has quickly elevated their status.

"For us, it was very important to get a good result and now the players believe that we are good enough to qualify for the quarterfinals," said captain Oumar Barro, who plays at Danish club Brondby.

"After that, of course, every game is a cup tie and anything can happen. We are here to show we are not a small country. We want to be one of the best teams in Africa," he added.

South African coach Carlos Queiroz on Sunday claimed the referee had allowed Burkina Faso to intimidate his players physically but Barro said they had planned a tough approach against Bafana Bafana, as South Africa are known.

"We knew they had very good technical players and you can't let them play too much with the ball. We had to give them a tough time and we had decided to play hard," he said.

Burkina Faso went into the tournament having fired their Argentine coach Luis-Oscar Fullone on the eve of the event but Barro said it had had little effect on the team.

"We were struggling to find a starting 11 for the side in all our warm-up games and the new staff did not have much time to prepare but I don't think his departure affected us really."

Fullone's replacement, Jacques-Michel Yameogo, spent Monday morning accepting congratulations from several bus loads of Burkina Faso supporters who found their way into the town house complex in Segou where the four group B teams are housed.

If Burkina Faso progress past the first stage it will be the first time the Stallions have done so since hosting the finals in 1988.

Cameroon make waves with new shirts

SIKASSO, Mali -- Cameroon, the only African team to have reached the World Cup quarter-finals, are making footballing history again at this year's African Nations Cup -- with their shirts.

Their performance in Sunday's 1-0 win over the Democratic Republic of Congo was little to write home about but their unique sleeveless shirts have made the Indomatible Lions a talking-point once again.

Cameroon looked like a basketball team when they took the field in Sikasso, but the players were happy with the shirts in the burning sub-Saharan heat.

"We were very surprised when we were given the shirts yesterday but it was a pleasant surprise," said Patrick Suffoe.

"They look like basketball shirts but they were perfect for us in this weather."

Suffoe said the shirts had been supplied by team kit suppliers Puma especially for the tournament.

"I think we will be using them for the rest of the competition but I don't know about the World Cup, I don't know what FIFA think about them," he said.

"It's a special shirt for a special team."

 

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