Côte d'Ivoire outfox Ghana on Renard's return in Afcon 2027 qualifier

The 20-year-old Brighton midfielder Malick Yalcouyé scored on his international debut just before half time at the Stade de la Paix in Bouaké.

Franck Kessié doubled the advantage from the penalty spot in the 58th minute.

Côte d'Ivoire take on Somalia on 29 September for their second game in Group C, while Ghana entertain Gambia.

"We know that every team in the pool will give their best to qualify for next year's tournament," said Renard. "We have to be humble, even if we know that we are favourites on paper. But it's on the field where you qualify."

In Group E, Democratic Republic of Congo beat Equatorial Guinea 2-0 to take early control of the pool, along with Zimbabwe who won 3-2 against Sierra Leone. Zimbabwe entertain DRC on Monday at the National Sports Stadium in Harare.

In Group G, Cameroon won 3-1 at home to Comoros and Namibia beat Congo 1-0.

In Group H, Tunisia's woes continue. After a disastrous World Cup in which coach Sabri Lamouchi was sacked during the tournament and the side lost all three games in the group stages, they drew 1-1 with Uganda.

Adam Arous opened the scoring for Tunisia in the 12th minute, but Rogers Mato levelled midway through the second half.

In the same pool, Libya and Botswana finished 2-2.
The 2027 Cup of Nations is scheduled to take place between 19 June and 17 July in Uganda, Tanzania and Uganda.

The top two teams from nine of the 12 qualifying groups will advance to next year's 24-team competition. Only one other side from the pools containing the three co-hosts will progress.

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Nations League starts in Europe

In Europe's Nations League on Thursday night in Amsterdam, the battle of the new star bosses Jurgen Klopp and Xavi Hernandez ended in a stalemate after the Netherlands scored late to salvage a draw against Germany.

Felix Nmecha put Klopp's side ahead at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam during the first half of their opening game in League A Group 2.

But in second-half stoppage time, Ruben van Bommel, son of the Belgium head coach Mark van Bommel, marked his international debut by setting up Cody Gakpo for the Netherlands' equaliser.

"Even though I badly wanted to win, I'll take the draw," Klopp said. "I was very, very, very pleased with a lot of the individual performances. Overall, I was very happy with the passion we showed.

"We can play better and play more football, that's for sure."

In the pool's other game in Belgrade, Greece beat Serbia 2-1.

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Haaland double for Norway

In League A Group 4, Erling Haaland scored twice as Norway overcame their fellow Scandinavians Denmark 3-2 in Oslo.

The 26-year-old Manchester City star netted in the 18th minute to give his side a 2-0 lead following Oscar Bobb's opener four minutes earlier. 

Mikkel Damsgaard halved the deficit after 25 minutes and Rasmus Hojlund levelled for Denmark in the second half.

But 16 minutes from time, Haaland notched up his 64th international goal to restore his side's lead and secure the victory.

"It tasted sweet," said Norway skipper Martin Odegaard. "It feels great to beat our neighbours. There is a lot we could have done better but even when we were put under pressure, we found a way back and responded."

In the group's other tie, Portugal beat Wales 1-0 in Lisbon. Joao Felix hit the only goal of the game in the first half.