2025 AFCON Qualifiers: Mali and Mozambique win, Nigeria held by Rwanda

Mali and Mozambique both earned crucial victories on Tuesday on the second matchday of the 2025 TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, taking the top two spots in Group I.

Mali claimed a 1-0 away win against Eswatini in South Africa. Yves Bissouma netted the decisive goal just ten minutes into the match, marking the Eagles’ first win under new coach Tom Sainfiet.

After a disappointing 1-1 draw at home to Mozambique in their opening game, Mali bounced back and now shares the top of the group with four points.

Their next test will be a double-header against Mozambique in October.

In the same group, Mozambique secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Guinea-Bissau.

Guima opened the scoring for the Mambas in the fifth minute with a strike from outside the box, but Mama Baldé equalised for Guinea-Bissau in the 24th minute.

The game remained level until the 72nd minute when substitute Elias, brought on by coach Chiquinho Conde, scored the match-winner. Mozambique now leads Group I, level with Mali on points.

Both teams will look to consolidate their positions when they meet in next month’s qualifiers.

Meanwhile, Nigeria's Super Eagles were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw by Rwanda in Kigali on Tuesday during their second match of the 2025 TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.

Despite dominating large parts of the game, Nigeria failed to break through Rwanda's disciplined defence, extending their unbeaten record against the Amavubi to six games.

Coming off an impressive 3-0 win over Benin Republic, expectations were high for the Super Eagles to continue their strong start in the qualifiers.

Coach Austin Eguavoen made only one change to the starting lineup, replacing Alex Iwobi with Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, while top scorer Victor Osimhen began the game on the bench.

Nigeria took control early, with Ademola Lookman being the most dangerous outlet. The Atalanta forward thought he had given Nigeria the lead in the 22nd minute, only to see his effort ruled out for offside.

His chance came after Victor Boniface had rattled the upright with a thunderous strike, but the rebound couldn’t be converted.

The first half ended without a goal, and Eguavoen made two changes at halftime, introducing Osimhen and Moses Simon to add firepower.

However, Rwanda, buoyed by the presence of President Paul Kagame in the stands, defended resolutely.

Goalkeeper Fiacre Ntwari was in superb form, making several crucial saves, including a last-minute effort from Osimhen’s header to keep the score level.

Nigeria continued to pile on pressure but could not find the decisive breakthrough.

Despite the dropped points, the Super Eagles remain top of Group D with four points, while Rwanda sits in second with two.

Nigeria will host Libya in their next qualifier in October, hoping to return to winning ways.