First-half goals scarce in cagey first round ties

 

Christian Crowther reacts to the first weekend of this year's African Cup of Nations, predicting limited goal action to continue as teams feel their way in...

 

Viewers expecting goal-filled amusement from the opening round of fixtures in the African Cup of Nations will have been sadly disappointed.

 

The teams in Group A in particular clearly didn't pick up the message that the onus was on them to set the tone for an entertaining tournament, with both games failing to return a single goal.

 

50,000 fans in Johannesburg will have felt sorely let down as hosts South Africa failed to break down first-time qualifiers Cape Verde, who are now priced at 2.84 to make it into the knockout stages.

 

Not to be out done, the following encounter between Angola and Morocco also served up a juicy stalemate.

 

However, after 180 minutes of goalless action, thankfully Group B's initial fixtures finally produced something to shout about as well as the first match winners at this year's competition.

 

Heavyweights Ghana looked to be in total control when Kwadwo Asamoah added to Emmanuel Agyemang Badu's opener against DR Congo, returning to the tournament after a seven-year absence.

 

But the Ghanaians couldn't hold on as Tresor Mputu replied quickly for the outsiders before Anderlecht star Dieumerci Mbokani converted a penalty which he'd won to make it 2-2 on the night.

 

As the top scorer from the qualification rounds, Mbokani is certainly one to watch and will be available to back at around 18.0 to finish as the tournament's top marksman.

 

The drama of the Ghana game did not rub off on Mali and Niger's encounter which failed to sparkle, but it did produce the first winner of the festivities as ex-Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita popped up with an 84th-minute winner.

 

Mali produced a third-place finish in 2012, leading to high hopes in the build-up to the tournament and the Eagles have certainly done their prospects of progression no harm with an early victory.

 

Keita's team are second favourites behind Ghana to win the group at 2.84 and are 13.0 to go all the way in South Africa.

 

There is obviously hope that the tournament will start to produce more goals but, with only a solitary first-half strike in the four opening matches, it seems that teams are erring on the side of caution.

 

When holders Zambia, who haven't scored in their last three games, get started later today, a goalless first half can be backed at 2.64.

 

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