A NOSTALGIC TRIP THROUGH THE AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS

Story written by Patrick Kamanga

A NOSTALGIC TRIP THROUGH THE AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS

The most coveted price in African football

Africa’s premier football competition is here with us again. The 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is set to kick off on Friday, 16^th of January in Malabo, Equitorial Guinea. From its humble beginnings in the late 1950’s, the AFCON has grown into the third most important football competition in the world. For the continent’s hordes of diehard fans, the AFCON is the “holy grail” of football. If the explosive manner of the recently concluded qualifiers is anything to go by, then this year’s edition promises plenty of excitement!

Cameroonian legend, Theophile Abega lifting the '84 crown

My love for the AFCON began in 1984 while in primary school when a close friend and a classmate Amadou Kaba brought to school a copy of L’Equipe, a French football magazine whose edition had been dedicated to that year’s AFCON in Cote D’ Ivore. The magazine may as well have been written in Greek or Chinese as I was the least concerned because as a kid, it was the pictures that mattered. The center fold spread contained a photo of the tournament’s best player and the then African footballer of the Year, the legendary Theophile Abega with his hands up in glory celebrating one of Cameroon’s three goals in their 3-1 final victory over Nigeria’s Green Eagles at the final match. Amadou’s family had migrated from Guinea a couple of years before and his father, who frequently traveled overseas on business, brought him the magazine from one of his many travels. He was a soccer nut with skills to match and this passion naturally rubbed off on me. Though familiar with most of the Cameroonian and Algerian players who had represented the continent at the Espana ’82 Copa Mundial, I had yet to see Abega who had been conspicuously absent due to injury. 

Battle of the Titans; Abega versus Keshi at the '84 finals

Listening to the many narratives about Abega’s exploits and those of other African football legends from Amadou captured my imagination such that on seeing the pictures in the magazine, a fire was ignited in me and I was hooked on the African game!

African club football was at its zenith from 1984-90 with many a club side churning out talent in droves. These gifted players were largely retained and relished for as long as possible before being sold to the rich clubs in Europe. They’d naturally be called up to their respective national sides and the AFCON was therefore the perfect stage for each nation to showcase its talent. The AFCON was therefore in essence, European football’s shopping mart because most teams would send scouts in search of guaranteed rare gems that would be “discovered” at each tournament!

I had to wait until 1986 to watch my first AFCON when Egypt hosted the event. Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (K.B.C), the State broadcaster and the only station at the time couldn’t relay the games live due to lack of sponsorship but made up by televising recorded matches after the tournament. The standout game was the final between the Pharaohs of Egypt against the defending Champions, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. The Pharaohs put up a brave fight halting the West African giants in a long drawn out and energy sapping game in the sweltering heat of Cairo, an inextricable deadlock that stretched beyond extra time. The Egyptians went on to win 5-4 on post match penalties to earn their third title. Cameroon’s Roger Milla was the tournament’s top scorer as well as its best player. 

Roger Milla, led the line in 1986

The 1988 version played in Morocco’s twin Mediterranean cities of Rabat and Casablanca is in my opinion, the best AFCON ever! Apart from the rich array of talent from across the continent, what made this edition extra special particularly to Kenyan fans was that the Harambee Stars had qualified after a 16 year hiatus. The Stars had also shocked the continent the previous year by reaching the finals of the All Africa Games in Nairobi, narrowly losing to Egypt while Gor Mahia F.C had also just won the Africa Cup Winners cup. All these factors converged to whip up one humongous football appetite, capturing the imagination of many a Kenyan fan. The only drawback was that the architect of Kenya’s sudden meteoric rise, German tactician Reihardt Fabisch was fired three months before the tournament’s commencement, casting a dark shadow and leaving local fans apprehensive! 

Notable attacking players present were Mohammed Timoumi, Merry Krimau, Aziz Bourderbala (Morocco), Rabah Madjer, Lakhdar Belloumi (Algeria), Roger Milla, Francois Omam Biyik, Cyrille Makanaky (Cameroon), Rashid Yekini, Samuel Okwaraji (Nigeria), Abdoulaye Traore, Youssouf Fofana(Cote D’ Ivore), Hossam Hassan (Egypt),  and Peter Dawo (Kenya).

Most of the teams played in an all out attacking manner and inspite of their obvious threat going forward, the presence of quite a number of world class goalkeepers neutralized the threat. The congregation of these goal tenders accounted for the overall low tally of goals scored. Algeria had Nacerine Drid while Morocco prided in Badou Ezaki, both of fresh from the Mexico ’86 Copa Mundial. Joseph Antoine Bell and Thomas Nkono filled in for Cameroon, Peter Rufai (Nigeria) and Ahmed Shoubeir (Egypt). Despite the presence of these goalkeeping giants, the goal tending accolades would however go to the hitherto unknown Merikani Mpangi, whose cat like reflexes and aerial acrobatics dazzled all and ensured Zaire (presently D.R Congo) had a respectable show.

Walking among giants and aiming to punch well above their weight, the Harambee Stars, demoralized by political meddling from the national federation never mentally showed up for the tournament! They went down by identical 3-0 losses to Nigeria and Egypt but somehow conjured a spirited fight against eventual winners Cameroon and bowed out after holding the Indomitable Lions to a scoreless draw in their final group game!

Pass masters Cote D’ Ivore were the most entertaining team. The Elephants, who under the Ivorian, Yeo Marshall’s tutelage displayed some exhilarating, one- touch, Latin style football that mesmerized the continent.

Coach Yeo Marshall, set a lasting legacy in the African game

In a titanic battle, the final, like four years earlier was a West African affair that pitted Cameroon against Nigeria. In a tense match, history was repeated when the Indomitable Lions narrowly edged the Green Eagles 1-0 in a controversial manner for their second ever title.

The run up to AFCON ’90 in Algeria was full of drama! The qualifiers run concurrently with the Italia ’90 World Cup qualifiers where in a cliff hanger, bitter North African rivals Algeria and Egypt met in a violent showdown. Egypt prevailed by a solitary goal via the lethal Hossam Hassan to make it to Italy but in a post match altercation, Algerian star Lakhdar Belloumi hit an Egyptian team Doctor with a bottle blinding him on one eye in the process. Due to this unfortunate incident the Egyptians threatened to pull out of the AFCON all together but rescinded and decided to send their B side, “saving” their senior side for the World Cup.

In another tough matchup Nigeria again faced their nemesis Cameroon in the final World cup qualifying round decider at home but failed to recover from the death of their star midfielder, the dreadlocked Samuel Okwaraji. He had collapsed and died of heart failure late in their previous game against Angola at the Surulere National Stadium in Lagos. 

Okwaraji's untimely passing shocked the continent

Cameroon nicked a solitary goal and edged Nigeria to pick one of the 3 African World Cup berths. With Nigerian football was in doldrums, Dutchman Clemens Westerhof was appointed to take charge of the Eagles for the ’90 AFCON with redemption in mind. With months left to the finals, however, a player revolt instigated by senior squad members, mostly foreign based professionals, over allowances and bonuses incurred the wrath of the Nigeria Football Association (NFA). With the blessing of the dictatorial military government in Abuja, the NFA dismissed the entire mutinous Green Eagles squad with the exception of the Belgium based Captain Stephen Keshi and veteran Rashid Yekini.

From calamity came opportunity!

Westerhof then traversed the length and breadth of the nation in search of new talent and rebuilt the squad from scratch picking many a young faces. Among the newcomers were Augustine J.J Okocha, Emmanuel Amunike, Mutiu Adepoju, Uche Okechukwu, Thompson Oliha, Benedict Iroha, Jonathan Akpoborie and most surprising 17 year old Daniel “the Bull” Amokachi among others. All the newcomers were home based and aged below 25. 

Amokachi, set the age record at the '90 finals

First order of business was to change the national team’s name from the calamitous “Green Eagles” to a more confidence inducing Super Eagles!

A revolution was now in place!

At the ’90 AFCON’s opening game; the Desert Foxes of Algeria administered a baptism of fire on the novices, dismantling the inexperienced Nigerians 5-1! Despite this setback, the Super Eagles recovered and got better with each subsequent game. In a miraculous comeback, they surprised everyone by overcoming Zambia in the semis to reach the final against the hosts! Daniel Amokachi also set the record as the youngest player to ever grace the AFCON. The Senegalese, Captained by Joules Boukande won many hearts with their beautiful football.

Kenya made it to its second consecutive finals but shambolic preparation and poor logistics conspired to make this another miserable outing. Without an official kit sponsor, the federation failed to even provide warm clothing in mild Mediteranean winter conditions. Reports trickled back of the horrible conditions the team had to endure including training with T-shirts and light flannel in near freezing conditions.

The Desert Foxes led by Rabah Madjer bottom center, delighted home fans in 1990

Led by the talismanic Rabah Madjer, Algeria steam rolled their way through the tournament humbling another West African giant Cote D’ Ivore 3-0 before edging out Senegal 2-1 to set a repeat match with Nigeria! The Nigerians played their hearts out and surprisingly pushed their more illustrious adversaries all the way, eventually losing by a solitary goal.

The ’92 AFCON hosted by Senegal saw the introduction of a new expanded format which raised the number of participating nations from 8 to 12. The defending Champions Algeria, perhaps jittery due to political turmoil raging at home that had fragmented the nation was a pale shadow of what it had been two years earlier. At their nadir, the Desert Foxes were humbled 3-0 by eventual winners Cote D’ Ivore in their group game and followed their North African brethren Egypt on an early flight back home! 

Francois Zahoui, first African player to grace the Italian Serie A

Francois Zahoui was the Ivorian midfield lynchpin and Oumar Ben Salah their creative force. To emphasize Zahoui’s rare talent and one for football trivia, he was the first African player to grace the Italian Serie A when he played for Ascoli in the mid 80’s, a rare feat at time.

Representing East Africa, Kenya qualified for its third consecutive AFCON but lost 3-0 and 2-1 against Nigeria and Senegal. On the bright side, Mickey Weche scored Kenya’s first goal in three successive finals, from a penalty spot against Senegal.

 At the semis, in a game dubbed the final before the final, Ghana edged Nigeria 2-1 in extra time to set up a final against Cote D’ Ivore. In a tight, drawn out game both teams were still deadlocked after extra-time. The Ivorians bagged their first and only title since after winning 11-10 in the longest penalty shootout ever in the history of the continental finals. They also didn't concede a single goal nor lose a match in regular time.

This triumph was Coach Yeo Marshall’s swan song. In his decade long tenure, he had exhibited commitment, hard work and patience which finally paid dividends. In this period he had built his sides around a core of very talented players; Serge Maguy, Aka Kwame, Francois Zahoui, Oumar Ben Salah, Amani Yao, Abdoulaye Traore and Youssouf Fofana. Coach Marshall and his charges propelled Cote D’ Ivore into the top tier of African football, laying the foundation for the Ivorian football’s flamboyant style, a legacy is still evident to date.

In a tragic and sad twist of fate, the entire Zambian national football team perished in an air disaster off the coast of Gabon enroute to a World cup qualifier in Senegal in April 1993. Team Captain Kalusha Bwalya who was to link up with the team from his PSV Eindhoven base in Holland and Charles Musonda then nursing an injury, were the only survivors. Staring down the precipice of football limbo, Zambia had less than a year to rebuild an entire squad from scratch. Against impossible odds, they qualified for the 1994 AFCON finals.

Coming of age, the Super Eagles hit their peak in 1994. 
Standing left; Okechukwu, Siasia, Eguavuen, Finidi, Akpoborie, Rufai
Bottom left; Yekini, Amunike, Oliseh, Adepoju, Amokachi

At Tunisia ‘94, Nigeria under Westerhof exemplified the adage that says “patience pays!”  The Super Eagles squad, painstakingly built and nurtured over a four years period had finally come of age and the AFCON was simply a dress-rehearsal for the ’94 World Cup in the USA.

The surprise team of the tournament was Mali’s Eagles who apart from making it to the knockout stage, did one better and even sent the mighty Egyptians packing in the quarters via a Soumaliya Traore brace.

The three young players who stood out at this tournament were Cote D’ Ivore’s Michel Bassole, Mali’s Fernand Coulibaly and Guinea’s Aboubacar Titi Camara.

Ghana’s Black Stars were the most disappointing team. They capitulated as a result of a bitter and protracted feud between their two star players; Abedi Pele and Anthony Yeboah, dividing the camp thus setting the team up for failure.

In a remarkable tale of recovery, Zambia’s Chipolopolo (Copper bullets) shocked the world of football by battling their way to the final where they challenged the might of Nigeria, narrowly losing 2-1! Nigeria won its second ever title after several near misses. Rashid Yekini was the tournament’s top scorer. Kalusha Bwalya, Dennis Lota and Elijah Litana emerged as heroes for bravely carrying the Zambians from the ashes.

The designated host for the ’96 event had been Kenya, who withdrew at the eleventh hour citing financial constraints. The South Africans stepped in to save the tournament but were embroiled in a diplomatic spat with Nigeria. The row spiraled out of control forcing defending Champions Nigeria to pull out casting a shadow over the second international sporting event to be held in post-apartheid South Africa after the ’95 Rugby World Cup. Nigeria’s absence robbed the tournament of quality, a view that was further vindicated when their under 23 team overcame great odds later that year, at the Olympics in Atlanta, felling South American colossi, Brazil and Argentina to win gold, a first by an African team.

A new format was introduced expanding the number of participating teams from 12 to 16. With the inspirational presence of the Rainbow Nation’s founding father Nelson Mandela at all their games, the Bafana Bafana (the Boys) were unstoppable! Coached by Clive Barker and Captained by Lucas Radebe, they fired the opening salvo by crushing the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon 3-0! At the final match, emulating the Spring Boks rugby World Cup triumph a year before, South Africa beat Tunisia 2-0 in extra time to win their first continental title heralding a new era in the fledgling nation. 

Wonder kid Mohamed Kallon, broke the age record in '96

The rare gem uncovered at this competition was Sierra Leone striker Mohamed Kallon, who at 15 years old broke Daniel Amokachi’s record as the youngest ever participant set at Algeria ‘90.

Madiba inspired the Bafana Bafana to the '96 AFCON win

Burkina Faso hosted the1998 edition. The notable absentee was Nigeria, still serving a two year ban during the qualifiers due to their withdrawal in 1996. The Burkinabes sourced the services of the well-travelled French tactician, Phillipe Troussier. Christened the “white witch doctor”, he lived up to his billing by working instant magic, leading the home side to the semifinals where their charm finally ran out going down 2-0 to Egypt!

The late Mahmoud El Ghouhary, a true African legend

Managed by veteran Coach Mahmoud El Ghouhary, Egypt as always, drew most of their squad players from the two Cairo clubs; Al Ahly and Zamalek. These two clubs had seen a resurgence from the mid 80’s through the 90’s, dominating continental club football. El Ghouhary simply tapped into this potential.

Being a World Cup year, a lot was expected of the four African representatives to the France ’98 finals at the AFCON; Morocco, South Africa, Tunisia, and Cameroon. Of the four, only South Africa made it past the quarter final, progressing to the final where they lost 2-0 to Egypt. El Ghouhary set the record as the first African to win the AFCON both as a player (1959) and as a coach. Egypt’s Hossam Hassan set a goal scoring record with a tally of 7 goals.

Hossam Hassan defied age to set numerous records

In the most dramatic comeback ever witnessed in African football, trailing 4-1 with three minutes of regular time remaining, DR Congo overcame great odds to tie the game 4-4 at the final whistle, against the hosts in a 3^rd place play off. In a perfect “smash and grab” operation, the Congolese proceeded to gut the 40,000 capacity home crowd, winning 4-1 in the ensuing penalty shootout!

The continental football authority CAF, borrowing a leaf from the FIFA’s decision to award the South East Asian nations of Korea/ Japan as joint co-hosts for the 2002 World cup, likewise set up a Ghana/Nigeria “collabo” for the AFCON at the turn of the century.

The two host nations were fancied to progress furthest and meet in the final. The Nigerians in particular were baying for blood after a six year absence! The Super Eagles were pre-tournament favourites, underscoring their strong squad and home advantage. Cote D’ Ivore were the most disappointing team and headed home early after two loses and a draw. On returning home, the Elephants squad, most of who played in the lucrative European leagues was given a dress down by the military dictator, General Robert Guei and then interned at a military barracks to teach the players patriotism and instill a sense of civic duty!

Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa topped their groups with ease. Ghana exited in quarters going down 1-0 to South Africa much to the chagrin of their home fans. Bitter rivals Nigeria and Cameroon navigated the semis effortlessly and renewed their old rivalry in a tense final.

In a dominant first half, the Indomitable Lions threw down the gauntlet by taking the lead via the diminutive Samuel Etoo to silence the packed Surulere Stadium in Lagos. Shock led to disbelief as Patrick Mboma added a second minutes later for a 2-0 half time lead. Nigeria responded with quick succession after the break and was in equal terms with Okocha grabbing the equalizer via a scotching 25 yard thunderbolt! The two teams were tied through extra time requiring post-match penalties. Prevailing in the penalty shootout, Cameroon maintained their perfect record over Nigeria with a third final win over their neighbours for their 3^rd title. 

Indomitable Lions, broke home fan's hearts at the 2000 AFCON final

The AFCON returned to the Sahel when Burkina Faso’s western neighbours Mali played hosts for in 2002 finals. Being a World Cup year much was expected from the five continental representatives; Cameroon, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia. Under German tactician Winfred Schaffer, Cameroon were the pre-tournament favourites after a great showing at the 2001 Confederation cup where they were losing finalists to France as well as 2000 Sidney Olympics’ where they won the soccer gold.

Nigeria and Senegal progressed comfortably and met in an explosive semi final with Senegal producing a major upset winning 2-1 in extra time via a Salif Diao goal. Senegal under Frenchman Bruno Metsu was the tournament’s surprise package. Metsu built his side around a core of very talented players; Captain Ferdinand Coly, El Hadji Diouf, Pape Bouba Diop, Amdy Faye, Omar Daf, Habib Beye, Khalilou Fadiga, Salif Diao, Henry Camara, and Aliou Cisse.

In an unfortunate incident, former Cameroonian legend Thomas Nkono, then their goalkeeping coach was manhandled then detained by local security agents on suspicion of ferrying “black magic”. Incensed by this event, the Cameroonians proceeded to teach their Malian hosts some harsh lessons for lack of hospitality by crushing the Eagles 3-0 in the other semi finals.

In the tightest final since the 1992, regular as well as extra time failed to separate these two “Lions” but Cameroon prevailed in the resultant penalty shootout, 3-2 to earn their fourth title. Senegal’s Teranga Lions were to prove that their AFCON show was no fluke by tying the Indomitable Lions’ Italia ’90 record by reaching the World cup quarter finals later that year.

The AFCON went north with Tunisia playing host in 2004. West African representatives Nigeria and Mali and Morocco, Tunisia for the North kept their respective regions in the race by reaching the semi-finals. In a North versus West matchup, the North Africans prevailed to make it a regional derby at the final. Morocco was particularly ruthless when they dispatched a shell shocked Mali 4-0. Earlier, Kenya and Rwanda who represented East Africa finished third in their respective groups winning one game each. Kenya’s 3-0 win over Burkina Faso was its first ever win in five continental finals (1972, 1988, 1990, 1992, and 2004)!

Tunisia beat Morocco 2-1 in the final to clinch their first ever AFCON title.

During the subsequent decade after the Italia ’90 World Cup, African football underwent a huge transformation triggered by Cameroon’s stellar show. That performance awoke the world to Africa’s potential which saw an ever increasing exportation of African footballers to European leagues mostly at a nascent stage, yanked at their “birth” then flung onto to the limelight crying, even before suckling and crawling!

Over this period, the African game had grown increasing technical, which though a positive as well as an improvement, also meant that the African game lost something. It’s Soul.

Blessed with speed and athleticism, what set apart the African footballer from the rest was his creativity and spontaneity which came naturally and had been the corner stone of the African game. These qualities were now not only evidently eroded but had been replaced by the dour rigidity of the European game. This fact has been clearly evident since 2006.

Playing hosts in 2006, the well organized, disciplined and technically astute Egyptians rewarded their fans with a fifth title when they overcame a Didier Drogba led star studded Cote D’ Ivore in post match penalties at the Cairo National Stadium. Egypt had replaced Italian Marco Tardelli, an ’82 World Cup winner, with local coach Hassan Shehata, a move that paid instant dividend.

Shehata like El Ghouhary 8 years earlier drew most of his players from the two Cairo giants Al Ahly and Zamalek. Hossam Hassan, then at a “grand old age” of 39, set another record winning his third AFCON title in a national team career spanning 21 years! He’s also the most capped player in the African game with a record of 176 appearances. Shehata and his charges went on to dominate the African game establishing a “Pharaonic dynasty” by winning consecutive titles beating Cameroon in 2008 and Ghana in 2010 which ratcheted Egypt’s treasure trove of continental titles to a record 7.  

The no-nonsense Shehata, outclassed the rest of the continent at three finals!

Shehata’s record of three consecutive AFCON wins may last a millennium! The revolutionary chaos of the “Arab spring” interrupted Egypt’s progression when all domestic football activities were banned. With a tradition of looking inward and their reliance on home based players, the ban was essentially a death sentence to Egyptian football.

The Pharaohs, established a dynasty at the AFCON

In Gabon/ Equatorial Guinea finals in 2012, playing a squad almost entirely made up of local based players, Zambia buried the ghosts of the 1993 fatal disaster by overcoming the star laden Cote D’ Ivore 8-7 on post match penalties for their first ever title in Libreville, Gabon. Cote D’ Ivore’s Elephants were under former player Francois Zahoui. On losing the final Zahoui missed the opportunity to emulate his mentor Yeo Marshall and simultaneously tie El-Ghouhary’s record after having won the continental title in 1992.

Zahoui was let down by his legion of stars

Tired of underachievement, the shenanigans surrounding bonuses and the lackadaisical performance of their foreign based players on national duty at both the 2010 World Cup and 2012 AFCON, Nigeria appointed former Captain Stephen Keshi as national coach. Keshi, perhaps borrowing a leaf from Westerhof 20 years earlier decided to do away with the “super egos” and went with a largely home based squad. This move hit pay dirt when Keshi’s boys did the impossible by humbling arguably the best African team in a generation, Cote D’ Ivore in South Africa at the semi final then upstaged Burkina Faso for their 3^rd title. Keshi also equaled El Ghouhary’s record and became the second African to win the AFCON both as a player and coach. Cote D’ Ivore’s golden generation lost at the semis in 2013 and their second final in less than a decade (2006, 2012) essentially becoming the biggest underachievers in African football history!

Stephen Keshi savouring a special moment

With Morocco pulling out as hosts for the forthcoming finals due to fears emanating from the Ebola epidemic currently raging in West Africa, Equitorial Guinea stepped in to save the finals.

If the qualifiers to the 2015 AFCON are habinger, where even the defending Champions Nigeria and Egypt were dumped out,then the 2015 AFCON in Malabo, Equitorial Guinea promises to be the best tournament yet!