January 16, (THEWILL) – Ivory Coast drew 2-2 with Sierra Leone at the ongoing TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations no thanks to a stoppage-time error from goalkeeper Badra Ali Sangare.
Sangare attempted to avoid a late corner only for the ball to slip from his grip, allowing Steven Caulker to capitalise, crossing for Alhaji Kamara to scamper home and steal a point for their efforts.
Early in the first half, Wilfried Zaha was sent sprawling by Umaru Bangura in the box, but Ivory Coast squandered the ensuing 12th-minute penalty. Franck Kessie could only mope as his spot-kick was pushed away by Mohamed Kamara.
Kamara had been the hero of Sierra Leone’s 0-0 draw with Algeria, but he was beaten in the 25th minute when Zaha’s brilliant pass found Sebastien Haller, who took a touch before firing into the bottom-right corner.
Musa Kamara performed some fantastic footwork to drive into the penalty area and fire a left-footed drive into the top-left corner to surprisingly draw Sierra Leone level in the 55th minute.
But, in the 65th minute, Ivory Coast took the lead again with a superb team goal, the ball being played quickly from left to right until Nicolas Pepe fired a low 20-yard shot past the Sierra Leone goalie.
However, his opposite number, Sangare, was left flustered and hurt in the course of allowing the dramatic equaliser in the third minute of stoppage time, which ensured that both sides shared the points after Matchday two.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
