Afcon 2021: Friday fixtures, squad news and kick-off times

Johannesburg – Another dazzling round of fixtures are expected in a fired-up busy schedule which starts this afternoon for the ongoing African Cup of Nations (Afcon) held in Cameroon.

The tournament, which originally was scheduled to be played last year in June and July 2021, is currently on track, having started this past Sunday, and will end on a higher note on February 6, where the winner of the tournament will pocket $5 million (R76 million).

In today’s most anticipated match to watch, Ghana will square off against Gabon, as they will be looking to get their feet together in the Afcon campaign.

The Black Stars had a tough start at the beginning of the tournament having suffered a narrow defeat at the hands of Morocco on Monday.

Today’s game is a must-win for the Black Stars, who are currently 52nd in the latest FIFA World Rankings.

On the other hand, it will not be an easy game for Ghana, as they will clash with Gabon, who also started well in the right foot in their opener for Afcon.

The current table leaders beat the Comoros on Monday with a hard-fought 1-0 win at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium.

Exciting news coming from Gabon’s dressing room is that the national team’s captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang returned to training yesterday following the end of his Covid-19 quarantine.

The game which is expected to have sparks will be officiated by the South African referee Victor Gomez, who has been called to officiate a big match for the tournament, following match controversy in a clash between Ghana and Morocco.

In Group B, Malawi and Zimbabwe will look to get their Afcon campaign up and running, as they will square up against each other this evening.

Both teams had a tough start to the campaign as they suffered defeat in their respective opening Group B fixtures and will want to get back on track with a positive result today.

Malawi have reinforced their squad with five players who were on the reserve list.


The players are Brighton Munthali, Paul Ndlovu, Dan Chimbalanga, Gerald Phiri, and Stain Dave.

The Malawian football association said it has recalled the players as a measure to boost the Flames squad which has been hit by Covid-19 as six players tested positive in Cameroon while three others were delayed in Saudi Arabia as a result of being in isolation.

Today’s fixture:

Friday, 14 January

Group B: Guinea v Senegal – 15:00

Group B: Malawi v Zimbabwe – 18:00

Group C: Comoros v Morocco – 18:00

Group C: Gabon v Ghana – 21:00

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