Morocco trounced 10-man Niger 5-0 in Rabat on Friday to win Group E and become the first African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
Ismael Saibari scored twice in the first half after Abdul-Latif Goumey was sent off and second-half goals from Ayoub el Kaabi, Hamza Igamane and Azzedine Ounahi completed the rout.
A sixth straight victory lifted Morocco to an unassailable lead with 18 points -- eight more than Tanzania -- and sealed a seventh appearance at the global showpiece with two matches to spare.
Morocco were shock semi-finalists at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, topping a group including Croatia and Belgium and eliminating Spain and Portugal in the knockout phase.
The stunning run came to an end in the semi-finals as they lost 2-0 to France.
Only Ounahi of the scorers against Niger was in the 2022 World Cup squad with coach Walid Regragui introducing new faces since, including Saibari from Dutch club PSV Eindhoven.
In Group A, Egypt beat Ethiopia 2-0 in Cairo with Premier League stars Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush converting late first-half penalties.
Egypt can join Morocco at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico if they win away to second-placed Burkina Faso on Tuesday.
Newcastle United signing Yoane Wissa was among the goals as the Democratic Republic of Congo hammered South Sudan 4-1 in Juba to stay top of Group B.
Wissa moved from Brentford in a £50 million ($67 mn) deal after Sweden striker Alexander Isak left Newcastle for Liverpool in a British record move.
The Congolese are hoping to return to the World Cup for the first time since 1974, when the central African country was called Zaire.
- South Africa triumph -
Cedric Bakambu scored twice to help the visitors build a three-goal half-time advantage and Wissa added a fourth before Keer Majak claimed a consolation goal.
Senegal trail DR Congo by one point ahead of a top-of-the-table showdown in Kinshasa on Tuesday after beating Sudan 2-0 in Diamniadio through goals from Kalidou Koulibaly and Pape Matar Sarr.
South Africa maintained a five-point lead in Group C thanks to a comfortable 3-0 'away' victory over neighbours Lesotho in Bloemfontein.
The home fixture for Lesotho was moved to the central South African city, 145 kilometres by road from the border, because the mountain kingdom does not have a FIFA-approved stadium.
Mohau Nkota, who quit famed Soweto club Orlando Pirates last month to join Saudi Pro League outfit Al Ettifaq, scored his first international goal for Bafana Bafana (the Boys) on 15 minutes.
Lyle Foster from Premier League returnees Burnley and Oswin Appollis netted within four minutes midway through the second half.
Victory did come at a cost for South Africa, though, with defenders Nyiko Mobbie and Thabo Moloisane retiring injured ahead of a key clash with Nigeria at the same venue on Tuesday.
South Africa have 16 points, five more than Benin, who edged Zimbabwe 1-0 in Abidjan through a Steve Mounie goal. Nigeria, nine points behind the leaders, host Rwanda on Saturday.
Clinical first-half finishing earned Gambia a surprise 3-1 win over Kenya in Nairobi with Brighton winger Yankuba Minteh scoring the second.
However, the result had no impact on the top of Group F, with reigning African champions the Ivory Coast away to Gabon on Tuesday in a match likely to decide who finishes first.
Serhou Guirassy, a prolific scorer for Borussia Dortmund with 38 goals in all competitions last season, bagged his first for Guinea in World Cup qualifying to set up a 3-0 win over Somalia.
But a disappointing campaign by Guinea -- they lie fourth eight points behind Group G leaders Algeria -- means Guirassy will almost certainly miss the World Cup.
Morocco crush 10-man Niger to seal 2026 World Cup spot
https://arab.news/249ax
Morocco crush 10-man Niger to seal 2026 World Cup spot
Alcaraz wins thriller with Fritz at ATP Finals, Musetti downs De Minaur
- Alcaraz needs one more victory to guarantee the year-ending world No. 1 spot
- Musetti’s 7-5 3-6 7-5 win means that all four players can still make the semifinals
TURIN, Italy: Carlos Alcaraz came under extreme pressure before overcoming Taylor Fritz 6-7(2) 7-5 6-3 in a thrilling match at the ATP Finals on Tuesday, before Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti beat Alex de Minaur in a dramatic encounter.
Musetti’s 7-5 3-6 7-5 win means that all four players can still make the semifinals, with the Italian facing Alcaraz, on two wins from two, and Fritz taking on De Minaur on Thursday to close out the Jimmy Connors Group, with the top two making the last four.
Last year’s finalist Fritz played the tennis of his life, as both men served up the best encounter of the season-ending championships so far, but the American ran out of steam as Alcaraz turned on the style and took the deciding set with ease.
Alcaraz and Fritz had won their opening group matches, and the Spaniard looked in real trouble when the American took the opening set in a tiebreak. Alcaraz faced break points in the second set but rallied back to draw level.
Fritz began to tire, and Alcaraz broke to lead 4-2 in the final set before wrapping up the win in two hours and 48 minutes by serving out to love.
“It was pretty tight, I was struggling more than him in the first set,” Alcaraz said. “I wasn’t serving well, and I think he was pretty comfortable from the baseline, from everywhere.”
Alcaraz needs one more victory to guarantee the year-ending world No. 1 spot.
Tuesday’s clash was a battle from the opening game, with Fritz taking nine minutes to hold after hitting three aces but also facing two break points. The American forced three break points in the next game before the pair traded breaks.
Fritz raced into a 5-2 lead in the tiebreak and smashed two aces to take the set. At 2-2 in the second, Alcaraz was rattled, his drop shots which earlier beat Fritz began to fall short but, after losing advantage five times, the Spaniard held on.
Alcaraz got lucky with a shot that hit the net but crept over in the final game of the second set and broke to take the match to a third, where the Spaniard outclassed an exhausted Fritz.
“I was really relieved after the win because of everything I went through during the match,” Alcaraz said.
“I wasn’t feeling the ball as well as I was in the first round, but I’m really happy that I found a way to come back.”
Magical Musetti
Musetti looked down and out with De Minaur serving for the match but those few who left early to beat the traffic missed out on a stunning comeback.
The Italian took the first set after breaking serve at 5-5, and De Minaur survived three break points in the second set opener before finding his first break points of the match at 4-4 and making them count.
De Minaur had control in the final set at 2-0 up, but when it came to the crunch Musetti found energy from somewhere to pull off a great escape, as defeat would have meant elimination.
After two spectators died from cardiac arrests on Monday, play was held up again for a medical emergency in the crowd in the final set of Musetti’s win. The match was suspended for several minutes before resuming. Local media reported a fan was transported to hospital in a serious but not life-threatening condition.
