Day 1: African Cup of Nations 2015 Round-Up

Equatorial Guinea, the last-minute host of the 2015 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, were deprived of winning a game opener as Thievy Bifouma (pictured) got a late equalizer to give a Claude LeRoy-coached Congo a 1-1 draw on Saturday in Bata.

SEE ALSO: Cameroon Midfielder Alex Song Retires from International Soccer 

Equatorial Guinea’s Emilio Nsue opened the tournaments goal scoring with a strike that could have given his country a much-needed win.

His effort was performed brilliantly by Kike Seno. Equatorial Guinea could have sealed a win but Middlesbrough forward Nsue’s second strike at goal was controversially ruled out as offside.

Congo came back strong in the second half and got their equalizer three minutes from close of normal proceedings through a goal from Bifouma.

Watch Bifouma make his goal against Equatorial Guinea here:

 

The effort of the Congo team was spectacular especially in the last 30 minutes of the game; however, according to published reports, Congo’s coach, Yannick Bolasie, was angered by the fact that a normally 12 minutes’ drive to the stadium “took 65 minutes.”

He believed the results would have gone Congo’s way should they have not been delayed on their way to the stadium.

Consequently, Bolasie advised the organizers to cater better for teams saying, “The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has to protect teams when they are traveling to the stadium.”

Gabon Show Intent as They Upset Burkina Faso with 2-0 Win

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (pictured) led a very determined Gabon to down the silver medalist of the last tournament in South Africa.

In the 19th minute, the French-born Borussia Dortmund striker and captain of Gabon, Aubameyang, found his way blocked but fixed himself at the second attempt before lambasting a cracker for the opener at the Estadio de Bata.

Watch Aubameyang make a goal here:

 

The early goal from Gabon didn’t stop Burkina Faso from pressing for an equalizer. Efforts from promising teenager Bertrand Traore of Chelsea FC, though, were stopped by hardworking Gabonese goalkeeper Didier Ovono.

Malick Evouna in the 72nd minute sealed the victory for Gabon with a fine header past Burkinabe goalkeeper Moussa Fofana.

The results of the openers leave Gabon on top of Group A followed by Equatorial Guinea and Congo. Meanwhile, group favorite Burkina Faso would have to win their next game against the host nation to climb out of the bottom of the group.

SEE ALSO: Indomitable Lions of Cameroon Prepare for AFCON 2015 in Equatorial Guinea