JOHANNESBURG: Prolific Liverpool scorer and Egypt captain Mohamed Salah will be among the stars in action this week when 2026 World Cup qualifying in Africa kicks off with two match days.
His two Premier League goals against Brentford at the weekend raised his total to 200 in English football, and he is now set to shine against Group A rivals Djibouti and Sierra Leone.
Salah was the second highest ranked African in the Ballon d’Or last month behind Napoli and Nigeria forward Victor Osimhen, who misses the first matchdays due to an injury.
Omar Marmoush of Eintracht Frankfurt and Mostafa Mohamed of Nantes are other Egyptians who have been scoring regularly in major European leagues this season.
Djibouti, who face Egypt in Cairo on Thursday, are among the weakest African national teams and have twice suffered eight-goal hidings in World Cup qualifiers.
Sierra Leone will be handicapped at having to stage a home fixture against Egypt on Sunday in Liberia because they lack an international-standard stadium.
Egypt have won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times, but struggle in World Cup qualifying, reaching the finals only three times, compared with eight appearances by Cameroon.
The strongest challenge to Salah and his teammates could come from Burkina Faso, ranked 10th in Africa, five places below Egypt. Guinea-Bissau and Ethiopia are the other Group A contenders.
Nigeria must do without Osimhen, one of the favorites to win the CAF Footballer of the Year award next month, and injured AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
But Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro has many talented replacements to choose from, including Victor Boniface of Bayer Leverkusen and Taiwo Awoniyi of Nottingham Forest.
There are concerns, however, about the Super Eagles’ defense with Cyprus-based goalkeeper Francis Uzoho coming under fire for his performances in two recent friendly matches.
Zimbabwe are back in international football after a FIFA ban for government interference prevented them competing in 2024 Cup of Nations qualifying.
They are among 17 African countries who cannot play at home either because of sub-standard stadiums or safety concerns and will host Nigeria in the Rwandan city of Butare.
South Africa are considered the biggest threats to Nigeria in Group C, but will tackle Benin at home and Rwanda away minus star Lyle Foster.
The Burnley forward and only South African in the Premier League has been sidelined by the recurrence of a mental health issue.
Former Premier League manager Chris Hughton admits he is under pressure as Ghana coach ahead of qualifiers at home to Madagascar and away to the Comoros.
“They are two games we must do well in,” he said amid media calls for his dismissal after a four-goal friendly hiding by the United States last month.
Veteran Andre ‘Dede’ Ayew, who joined Ligue 1 outfit Le Havre last weekend, has been recalled, but an injury rules out another midfielder, Thomas Partey from Arsenal.
Last December in Qatar Morocco became the first World Cup semifinalists from Africa, but they will not be involved in matchday one as opponents Eritrea withdrew without an explanation.
So Saudi Arabia-based goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi and Sevilla forward Youssef en-Nesyri go into action for the Atlas Lions only next Tuesday.
Their belated entry into qualifying will be away to Tanzania in Group E, which also includes resurgent Zambia, Congo Brazzaville and Niger, who are set to hire Moroccan coach Badou Zaki.
The nine group winners after 260 qualifiers that stretch to October 2025 qualify for the record 48 nation finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
There could be a 10th African qualifier as the best four runners-up enter a mini-tournament and the winners advance to inter-continental play-offs with two finals places up for grabs.
Egypt captain Salah leads African stars into World Cup qualifying
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Egypt captain Salah leads African stars into World Cup qualifying
- Salah was the second highest ranked African in the Ballon d’Or last month behind Napoli and Nigeria forward Victor Osimhen
Canada’s Lee sets pace, Kim in the hunt for LIV Golf wild card spots
- LIV Golf Promotions in Florida offers top 3 finishers a chance to play in 2026 regular season
LECANTO: Canada’s Richard T. Lee has proved the player to watch during the first three days at LIV Golf Promotions and is now well-placed for a wild-card spot in the 2026 LIV Golf season.
Anthony Kim, meanwhile, found another gear on the back nine on Saturday, putting him in a better position to return to full-time status in the league.
The final 18 holes of the 36-hole shootout at Black Diamond Ranch take place on Sunday with a potentially career-changing reward for the top three finishers — guaranteed LIV Golf wild-card status for 2026. In addition, the top 10 and ties earn exemptions into the Asian Tour’s International Series.
For the second time this week, Lee led the field with a bogey-free 6-under 64. The 35-year-old will take a two-shot lead over his closest pursuers going into Sunday, giving him a significant advantage. However, he does not plan to take his foot off the gas.
“Honestly, I don’t think it would be comfortable for any player to have a two-shot lead on the last day,” said Lee, who has two eagles, 13 birdies and just one bogey in his 54 competitive holes this week. “I’ll just put my hat on and just play my golf.”
Kim is among three players who are tied for second after shooting a bogey-free 4-under 66, along with South Africa’s Oliver Bekker and Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond. Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard is solo fifth after his 3-under 67, with five other players lurking at 1 under.
Kim, who played as a wild card in the past two seasons following his return to competitive golf after a 12-year retirement, was just 1 under through 12 holes on Saturday. But he made consecutive lengthy birdie putts at the 13th and 14th holes, birdied the par-5 16th, then saved par with a 15-footer at the par-4 18th that circled the cup before dropping.
“I have an opportunity to get one of those spots,” said the 40-year-old, the only American to advance to the weekend. “That’s what I asked for coming into this week and put myself in a good position. Now I’ve just got to go finish.”
Kim would not be in this position had he not made an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th on Friday to make the cut on the number.
“I knew that if I didn’t make birdie on 18 [Friday] that my chances of playing on LIV next year were gone, and to me that’s a big deal,” Kim said. “I’d like to play at the highest level against the best players. It meant a lot to me.”
Bekker was part of LIV Golf’s inaugural field at the 2022 London tournament. Four seasons later, he’s excited about the opportunity to return to the league as a full-time member.
“Thinking back on it now, I had the opportunity to play a few more events, and now I’m like, well, maybe I should have played them,” he said. “The water was a bit rough at that stage and didn’t know what was going to happen, so I played it a bit safe. Luckily, I’ve been given another opportunity this week, and hopefully I can take it.”
Janewattananond won four tournaments in 2019 when he became a top 50 world player and, aged 30, still has years left in his competitive career. After shooting a second-round 67 to advance to the weekend, he shot a 66 on Saturday that included four birdies in a six-hole stretch to end his front nine.
“It’s a very big prize at the end of the day,” he said. “Those three spots up for grabs, it would give me freedom to play wherever I want and security for my family.”
The 34-year-old Bjerregaard, a two-time winner on the DP World Tour, said earning full-time LIV Golf status would be career-changing.
“Where I am in my career right now, it’s probably that or retirement,” he said. “Yeah, that would mean a lot for sure.”
Although nothing is guaranteed, Lee has played so well this week that there may be just two spots available for the remainder of the field.
“We’re not playing for one spot,” said Janewattananond. “I don’t have to worry about him. I just have to worry about myself.”
“He played great today,” added Bjerregaard, playing in the same group as Lee on Saturday. “But I would be happy with any of the other two spots, so that’s fine. I can finish third. I wouldn’t mind.”
