Ethiopia put seven past Libya in their second leg clash on Tuesday in Addis Ababa, to reach the final round. Fans favorite Loza Abera struck four goals as ‘Lucy’ completed a double over Libya and progress 15-0 on aggregate.
(FIFA)–The road from Africa to the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019™ is long and arduous and ends at the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations in Ghana later this year, where the top three teams will advance to next year’s world finals.
Qualifying is under way for the continental championships, with 22 teams attempting to battle their way through the qualifying competition, which comprises two rounds of two-legged knockout matches. FIFA.com rounds up the action from the first qualifying round, played on 4 and 10 April. The second round will be played in June, when Nigeria, Cameroon and South Africa make their entrance.
First round results (winning teams in bold)
Kenya (1-0, 0-0) Uganda
Tanzania (3-3, 1-1) Zambia (Zambia win on away goals)
Libya (0-8, 0-7) Ethiopia
Congo (2-0, 1-1) Central African Republic
Senegal (2-1, 0-2) Algeria
Namibia (0-2, 0-2) Zimbabwe
Lesotho (1-0, 2-1) Swaziland
Morocco (1-1, 0-0) Côte d’Ivoire (Côte d’Ivoire win on away goals)
Sierra Leone w/o Mali (Sierra Leone withdrew)
Burkina Faso (2-1, 1-2) Gambia (Gambia win 5-3 on penalties)
Seven things we learned:
1 | Beaten 2-1 by Senegal in the first leg, Algeria turned the tie around in the second, taking the lead through a 23rd-minute Fatima Sekouane penalty and then surviving late Senegalese pressure to seal a place in the next round thanks to Benaichouche Rahma’s strike three minutes into stoppage time.
2 | Côte d’Ivoire, who made their Women’s World Cup debut at Canada 2015, were below their best as they edged past Morocco on the away goals rule. Fatou Coulibaly scored from the spot to give the Elephants the lead in the away leg, with the Moroccans equalizing late on through Chislane Chebbak. The Ivorians then held firm in defense in the return, securing a goalless draw and with it a place in the second round.
3 | Ethiopia had a far easier time of it against Libya. The first leg, held in Cairo, saw Loza Abera score a hat-trick and Rehima Zerga a brace as the Ethiopians cruised to an 8-0 victory. The Walyas were almost as impressive in the return in Addis Ababa, scoring seven times without reply, as Rehima Zerga helped herself to another brace and Hiwot Dengiso hit four.
Read the complete story at FIFA.com