Guinea v Morocco (1976 African Cup of Nations)

Guinea v Morocco was the decisive match of group stage at the 1976 African Cup of Nations. The match was played at the Addis Ababa Stadium in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 14 March 1976. Unlike most other Africa Cup of Nations, the 1976 winner was determined by a final group stage, with the final four teams playing in round-robin format, instead of a knockout stage. This was the last edition to feature a final group stage, while previously only the 1959 African Cup of Nations had also promoted this format.

1976 African Cup of Nations Final
Event1976 African Cup of Nations
Guinea Morocco
Guinea Morocco
1 1
Date14 March 1976
VenueAddis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa
RefereeNyirenda Chayu (Zambia)
Attendance30,000

Each team had defeated Egypt, while Morocco had also beaten Nigeria whereas Guinea had drawn against that same opponent. The point difference was in favor of Morocco, who was a single point clear off Guinea. Therefore, Guinea needed to win the last match to claim the title of champions of Africa; any other result would have Morocco take the title for the very first time.

The match ended in a 1−1 draw with Morocco scoring a late equaliser, meaning the North Africans kept the first place in the group and won their only title to date.[1] As of 2019, both Guinea and Morocco had their best Africa Cup of Nations performances in this edition.

Background
Standings before the final match
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Morocco 220042+24
 Guinea 211053+23
 Nigeria 201123–11
 Egypt 200236–30

In the 1976 African Cup of Nations, the eight qualified teams played in two groups of four, with the best two in each group qualifying for the final round-robin group.

Guinea had won group A with Egypt being runners-up. They had played each other in a 1–1 draw in their match with Guinea later beating Ethiopia and Uganda in their final two matches by the same 2–1 score. Egypt won 2–1 against Uganda and tied 1–1 with Ethiopia in the last group match.

Morocco won their group while Nigeria finished runners-up. Morocco tied 2–2 against Sudan in their first match and later won 1–0 against Zaire. Nigeria had won 4–2 against Zaire and 1–0 against Sudan. By the final group match Nigeria had a one point advantage over Morocco as both teams occupied the first two group B spots, however, the Moroccans beat Nigeria 3–1 and they swapped places.

In the first matches of the final round Morocco beat Egypt 2–1 while Guinea and Nigeria tied their match 1–1. The second matches was a repeat as all teams had played in the previous round. Morocco again beat Nigeria, this time 2–1, and Guinea won their match against Egypt 4–2. By the third and final matches of the tournament only Morocco and Guinea had a chance to win the game. The Moroccans had a one point advantage, meaning Guinea had to win the match in order to win the championship.

Match

Match details
Guinea 1–1 Morocco
Souleymane 33' Report Baba 86'
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Nyirenda Chayu (Zambia)
Guinea
Morocco
GK Abdoulaye Sylla
RB Jacob Bangoura
LB Djibril Diarra
DM Papa Camara
RM Youssuf Jansky
CM Chérif Souleymane
LM Bengally Sylladownward-facing red arrow
AM Ismail Sylla
RW N'Jo Léa
CF Petit Sory
LW Morciré Sylla
Substitutes:
FW Mory Koné upward-facing green arrow
Manager:
Romania Petre Moldoveanu
GK Mohammed Hazzaz
RB Mehdi Belmejdoubdownward-facing red arrow
CB Chérif Fetoui
CB Brahim Glaoua
LB Larbi Chebbak
DM Ahmed Aboualidownward-facing red arrow
CM Baba
AM Abdallah Semmat
RF Abdallah Tazi
CF Abdel Ali Zahraoui
LF Ahmed Faras
Substitutes:
MF Abdelmajid Dolmyupward-facing green arrow
FW Redouane Guezzarupward-facing green arrow
Manager:
Romania Virgil Mărdărescu

Aftermath
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Morocco 321053+25
 Guinea 312064+24
 Nigeria 31115503
 Egypt 300359−40

References
  1. "African Nations Cup 1976". Rsssf.com. 2016-06-23. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.