Another fascinating week of international competition across the continent comes to a close, with talking points aplenty as the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign got underway.
From unforgettable debuts to African heavyweights being humbled, here's the current state of affairs across the continent following the first international break of the 2024-25 season.
Centurion Salah's Egypt set the tone
While seven teams still enjoy a 100 percent record two matches into the qualifying campaign, none impressed quite like Egypt.
The Pharaohs began by dismantling Cape Verde 3-0 in Cairo, taking the contest beyond their guests in the first half, before then thoroughly schooling Botswana 4-0 in Francistown on Tuesday.
Trézéguet netted twice inside the first half, with Mohamed Salah , maintaining the excellent form he's demonstrated during the opening matches of Liverpool 's Premier League campaign, marking his 100th appearance for the North Africans with a close-range third just before the hour mark.
The forward becomes the 14th player to hit a century of international appearances for Egypt, receiving a commemorative shirt from Pharaohs legend Hossam Hassan for his troubles, and extends his lead as his country's all-time top scorer.
In a career crammed with honours and accolades, true international glory with Egypt has remained elusive for Salah - he's twice been defeated in AFCON finals. Could this campaign be the one that finally concludes with continental gold?
Aubameyang back for more
One of Salah's peers at the pinnacle of the African game over the last decade has been Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang , albeit with far fewer memorable international episodes to look back on.
Since properly breaking onto the scene at the 2012 Nations Cup, Aubameyang's international 'highlights' are arguably limited to being stranded overnight at Banjul airport, failing a COVID test and being quarantined for the duration of the 2022 AFCON.
Despite numerous international retirements, he's back for more, and has now played in Gabon's last four matches - the first time he's registered such a run since 2021.
He's scored in his last three - including the 4-1 defeat by Morocco on Friday and Tuesday's 2-0 victory over the Central African Republic - which represents his best scoring streak for his country in over a decade.
Could Auba, now 35 and ensconced in the Saudi Pro League , finally leave a genuine lasting legacy with the Panthers, who end the international break third in Group B?
Ballon d'Or nominee neutralised by Rwanda
Perhaps more so than any other team, Nigeria will have been desperate for a positive international break.
After a disastrous start to the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign earlier this year, the brief unedifying tenure of Finidi George, and the last-minute failure to land Bruno Labbadia as head coach, the Super Eagles were firmly in disarray heading into this break.
Former international fullback Augustine Eguavoen was drafted in as interim boss - we've been here before - and promptly dispatched noisy neighbours and recent nemesis Benin, helmed by former Eagles head coach Gernot Rohr, 3-0 to kick-off the qualifying campaign in style.
If that performance - inspired by two-goal Ademola Lookman - was a perfect response to the critics, but the follow-up - a 0-0 draw with Rwanda - brought the three-time champions back down to earth .
Lookman, freshly nominated for the Ballon d'Or, came closest to a winner when he headed home from Semi Ajayi 's knock-on, only for the latter to have been deemed to have fouled his opposite man.
Victor Boniface also hit the woodwork, while Victor Osimhen - returning to action as a second-half substitute - was also left frustrated in front of watching Rwandan president Paul Kagame, with Nigeria left to question how their rich array of attacking talent was unable to break down a side ranked 131st in the world.
As the NFF return their attentions to finding a long-term successor to Jose Peseiro, they'd do well to prioritise a coach who can forge these myriad attacking talents into a devastating force.
Debutant Mbatha rescues Bafana in the 95th minute... twice
Orlando Pirates' Thalente Mbatha enjoyed the kind of international break that he could have only dreamed of earlier this year, even if some of South Africa 's familiar frailties were exposed.
Signed by the Buccaneers from SuperSport United in January, he quickly made a strong impression with the PSL heavyweights before being drafted into the international fold for this window.
It was Mbatha - playing in front of his 'home' fans at the Orlando Stadium - who equalised in the 95th minute to ensure the points were shared.
Against South Sudan he repeated the trick, rescuing his new teammates with another 95th-minute goal - this time a winner - as Bafana dispatched the minnows 3-2 following a thoroughly unconvincing display in Juba.
South Africa have found a new hero in midfield, although Mbatha hasn't been able to solve their newfound defensive lapses.
They conceded just once in four 'knockout' matches at the Nations Cup, but that solidity has deserted them as we begin the new AFCON campaign.
Krasso the pace-setter for Ivory Coast
Jean-Phillipe Krasso became something of a forgotten man for the Ivory Coast during their unlikely run to the AFCON title on home soil earlier this year.
The new Paris FC striker netted in their opening tournament game against Guinea-Bissau, but then failed to score again as the competition wore on, and was eventually replaced in the starting XI by returning Sébastien Haller .
Indeed, Krasso only managed a handful of minutes during the latter stages of the tournament after losing his place before the quarterfinal.
He appears determined to make amends, and with Haller missing again, seized the opportunity to lead the line once again for Emerse Fae's Elephants during this international break.
Two matches in, and he's already the leading scorer in qualifying, having scored both goals in the 2-0 victory over Zambia before adding another as Chad were dispatched 2-0 away.
With Haller's future availability uncertain - he hasn't played competitively since June - 27-year-old Krasso has the opportunity to prove that he deserves to be the Elephants' primary striker.
Ghana yet to find the right formula
Africa's biggest underachievers of the international break - and the only major side not to pick up a win - were Ghana.
Despite an encouraging showing under new head coach Otto Addo during the June international break, it feels like back to square one for the Black Stars after a lacklustre showing in Kumasi against Angola concluded with the hosts snatching a 93rd-minute winner through Felicio Milson .
They appeared on course to make amends against Niger in Morocco, only for Alidu Seidu 's first-half goal to be cancelled out by Oumar Sako's equaliser nine minutes from time.
"We had a quite cheap goal against Angola, and again, I am just really, really disappointed," an exasperated Addo told journalists after the Niger draw. "We have to be on our toes to defend these situations better.
"I don't know what to say because I am really, really disappointed," he added. "We talked too much, and I am really disappointed to see the team concede a goal like this."
Cold war continues between Eto'o and Brys
Like Nigeria, Cameroon will have been desperate for events on the pitch to have distracted from the ongoing controversies off it during this international break. They didn't quite get their wish.
While the four points they accrued against Namibia (1-0) and Zimbabwe (0-0) were a pleasantly dull diversion from the recent off-field fireworks, there wasn't too much to celebrate from two insipid displays apart from a pair of clean sheets and Vincent Aboubakar 's winner in Douala.
Belgian head coach Marc Brys appears no closer to settling his war of words with FECAFOOT president Samuel Eto'o, and opted, after the draw with Zim in Kampala, where Cameroon's pre-match preparations were heavily affected by traffic jams in the city, to aim some criticism at the governing body.
"The conditions are incredibly difficult to work in," he told journalists . "We can't continue like this. It should be an objective for Cameroon to change things. They refused to let us train, we didn't train."
Brys subsequently appears to have been suspended for three months by FECAFOOT on Wednesday, due to his "irreverent behaviour", according to a communiqué signed by the federation's general secretary Blaise Djounang, as seen by ESPN.
It's surely going to be best for all parties that this marriage of inconvenience ends sooner rather than later.
Bissouma launches Saintfiet's reign
Mali 's Eagles had gone four matches without a victory before Belgian coach Tom Saintfiet cut short his absence from African shores and returned to take over ahead of the international break.
The well-travelled manager took Gambia to their second consecutive Africa Cup of Nations (having never previously qualified) earlier this year, before departing in February to take over the big job with the Philippines.
He returned when Mali - one of Africa's sleeping giants - came a-calling.
Saintfiet has Tottenham Hotspur 's Yves Bissouma to thank for ending his first international break as Mali boss with four points, with the central midfielder netting the equaliser at home against Mozambique to seal an underwhelming draw on gameweek one, before bagging the only goal of the game against Eswatini on Tuesday.
Promoted to captain by Saintfiet in the absence of Hamari Traoré , Bissouma appears primed to be the emblematic figure in the Belgian's new era with the West African heavyweights.
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