Emmanuel Adebayor

AFCOn 2017 qualifiers... Adebayor fails to inspire Togo

 

Emmanuel Adebayor ended his self-imposed international exile but failed to fire Togo past Tunisia in their 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

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The Crystal Place striker had not played for his country since June 2015 and rejected a call-up for last Friday's match away to Tunisia, which Togo lost 1-0.

He, however, returned for the Hawks yesterday in Lome but his side were held 0-0 by their Group A rivals.

Tunisia and Togo have seven points, Liberia have six and a game in hand.

Adebayor's change of heart came after a meeting with officials from his country's football federation.

Rwanda thumped Mauritius 5-0 with Ernest Sugira scoring a rapid-fire brace in their Group H tie in Kigali.

It gave Northern Irishman Johnny McKinstry's side sweet revenge for their 1-0 defeat in Mauritius three days ago. Rwanda move up to second in the table on six points, four points behind Ghana.

Algeria would have qualified for the tournament had they beaten Ethiopia, who they had thrashed 7-1 in Blida in their first group meeting last Friday.

However, Ethiopia took the lead three times but a late penalty by Faouzi Ghoulam secured a point for Algeria.

Algeria is top of Group J with 10 points, five points clear of Ethiopia with two matches left to play.

In the other match in the group Lesotho was surprised victory over Seychelles.

Senegal also had a chance of booking their place in Gabon following their 2-1 win in Niger — but they needed a draw between Burundi and Namibia.

Instead, Burundi secured a 3-1 away to sustain the competition in Group K and now, leaders Senegal need only to avoid defeat against Burundi in June to ensure their qualification.

The 13 group winners are guaranteed a place at the finals in Gabon, with the two best-placed runners-up also going through. Gabon qualifies automatically as hosts.

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