MOHAMED Salah scored two goals to lead Egypt to a 3-0 victory over Djibouti and secure qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Liverpool forward opened his account just six minutes after Ibrahim Adel had given Egypt an early lead in the match held in Morocco.
Salah added his second goal late in the game to complete the comprehensive win against opponents ranked 158 places lower in the world rankings.
This victory gives Egypt an unassailable five-point lead at the top of Group A in the African qualifiers. The 33-year-old captain has now scored nine times during the marathon qualifying campaign that began two years ago.
Egypt have now qualified for the World Cup on four occasions throughout their history. Salah helped Liverpool win the Premier League last season and captured the Golden Boot award with 29 goals.
The Egyptian captain has however struggled for form with his club this season, scoring just three goals in nine matches across all competitions. Ghana moved closer to qualification with an emphatic 5-0 victory over the Central African Republic in Meknes.
Thomas Partey was among the scorers for the Black Stars who need just one point from their final group match to secure their World Cup place.
Mohammed Salisu, Alexander Djiku, captain Jordan Ayew and Kamaldeen Sulemana completed the scoring for Ghana who led 1-0 at half-time.
Ghana now have 22 points and a vastly superior goal difference over their nearest challengers Madagascar. Cape Verde came from two goals behind to draw 3-3 with Libya in Tripoli and edge closer to their first ever World Cup appearance.
The island nation will clinch top spot in Group D if they defeat Eswatini in their final qualifying match on Monday. Cape Verde have 20 points after nine rounds, two more than Cameroon who beat Mauritius 2-0.
Cameroon must win their final match against Angola and hope Cape Verde drop points to have any chance of automatic qualification.
The African qualifiers will see the group winners advance directly to the 2026 World Cup.
The four best-ranked runners-up will enter a play-off tournament in November for a chance to qualify through inter-continental play-offs next March. – AFP
