African football is as caricatured as they come, with its tales of epics, quirks, hits, near-misses (never misses), and shenanigans. This leg, AFCON 2022 was no different.
The action to know who is who in African football makes the tournament momentous. The course to the ultimate title-decider Senegal versus Egypt was studded with adrenaline rush, highs and lows, and those moments that stole the show. Here are small spectacular moments to remember.
1. The Comoros goalkeeper, Chaker Alhadhur
Surprisingly, Chaker plays as a left-back for Ajaccio, a football club in France’s Ligue 2. After the team’s goalkeepers were ruled out for injuries and COVID-19, Chaker was the stand-in goalie. This moment became the aphorism of “improvise, adapt, overcome.” In many ways, he understood the assignment. In the match against Cameroon, he pulled it off with four agile saves and ace goalkeeping becoming De Gea’s doppelganger. insert this image. Although Cameroon sailed through, Chaker remains a match-maker.
2. The Rwandan referee Salima Mukansanga
The match official became the first woman to officiate an AFCON game. She watched over the Guniea Bissau vs Zimbabwe game. In an odd blunder, Referee Janny Sikazwe had concluded the game prematurely, Salima passed the test at a time when refereeing was under intense pressure.
3. Champs Algeria, Nigeria, and Ghana early exit
Algeria, the title defenders were knocked out of the biennial competition after only gathering one point in their pool. Nigeria had triumphed over Egypt in the group stages but was send off by Tunisia at round of sixteen. Their Ghanaian brothers were edged out after a lackluster group stage performance that ended with a sobering 3-2 loss to Comoros. These teams had been primed to be contenders, fans expected nothing short of semifinals, but their runs were nipped at the bud.
4. AFCON 2022 top scorer, Vincent Aboubakar
Vincent Aboubakar was AFCON’s top scorer who steered Cameroon to the team’s victories and made the historic comeback in the third-place playoffs against Burkina Faso. He was awarded the Gold Boot for a total of 8 goals scored in the tournament. Vincent features in any Best XI line-up of the tournament.
5. Peter Waweru Kamaku, the Kenyan referee
The Kenyan referee stole the show for his running style in the game between Guinea Bissau and Nigeria. He lectures Pure Mathematics at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT). He brought sprinting skills in the field and lives up to the stereotype – runs like a Kenyan.
6. Lastly the most laughable of Africa’s quirks
Fights or at least altercations are a staple of African football. The match pitting Ghana against Gabon descended into chaos after Benjamin Tetteh was red-carded after punching Aaron Boupendza. All this happened after the final whistle and the Ghanaian squad had to be entirely recalled to the pitch so that the sin is punished. However, Benjamin’s presence was a no-show and he was red-carded in absence. Another stunning stunt happened when AFCON’s official YouTube channel had their video pulled down for copyright reasons.
All in all, the AFCON 2022 was a breathtaking action filled with oddities – premature final whistles, matchmakers, sideshows, and the outliers (on the negative and positive). All the action winded up the final where Senegal beat Egypt 4-2 in penalties. Can’t wait for the 2023 series in Ivory Coast.
