In the curtain-raiser to Day 2 of the group phase in Pool A, Equatorial Guinea and striker Nsue, scorer of 3 goals, pummeled Guinea-Bissau. The final score was a resounding 4-2! With this victory, the Nzalang are provisionally top of Group A (4 pts), pending the match between Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria.
Emilio Nsue guided Equatorial Guinea to victory over Guinea Bissau with a hat-trick
In a match that had been closed until then (21st min), Emilio Nsue opened the scoring with a flat-footed finish. This followed a clearance from 5.50m out, which an Equato-Guinean player headed to Pablo Maret. The latter ideally launched Nsue, who took advantage of Guinea-Bissau captain Sori Mané's misreading of the ball to find himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Djoco. He crossed his shot, which was blocked, but ended up in the back of the net.
Guinea-Bissau responded with a shot from Mama Baldé in the 36th minute, the Djurtus' first shot on target. But the Nzalang goalkeeper was alert. A Guinea-Bissau recovery led to a precise cross back to Mama Baldé, and the equaliser came from a CSC from Orozco Fernandez, who was trying to counter the ball.
The match almost got out of hand a minute later when Guinea-Bissau striker Fraculino Dju won a penalty. On the slow-motion replay, he appeared to be mowed down by a defender. But just as Baldé was about to take it, the referee, after consulting VAR, reversed his decision.
The 1-1 scoreline at the end of the 1st half was a logical outcome, with the 2 teams trading blows.Even though Equatorial Guinea were the more precise side, with the advantage in possession. They also dominated clear-cut chances, with 2 shots on target out of 5 attempts. Guinea-Bissau, on the other hand, took 4 shots on target and had 43% possession.
Nsue sinks Guinea-Bissau with 2 new goals
At the start of the second half, Guinea-Bissau missed a clear-cut chance with an over-hit shot and were punished in the process. Equatorial Guinea goalkeeper Ovono's clearance fell at the feet of Josete Miranda, who fired home to give his country the lead (46th), aided by the apathy of the Guinea-Bissau defenders.
Guinea-Bissau had a great chance to equalize at the 50th minute, but success continued to elude them, with Dju firing into the clouds from a well-placed position.
Bis repetita, the action that followed the Bissau-Guinean miss led to another goal from Nsue (51st), who received a wonderful cross after a counter-attack. He stretched out his foot to score into an empty net, his 2nd of the day. The match took a turn for the worse when Nsue scored again, his 3rd, in the 61st to make it 4-1. Nsue, alone against the goalkeeper, feinted at him from the edge of the area to shoot and score.
New Guinea-Bissau signing Tchami had the chance to reduce the deficit in the 68th minute. He found himself one-on-one against the Equatorial Guinean goalkeeper, but missed his one-on-one.Equatorial Guinea then controlled the rest of the match. However, Guinea-Bissau managed to reduce the deficit with a goal from Zé Turbo in the 93rd minute. Final score (4-2)!
At the end of the match, possession was almost even. Equatorial Guinea attempted 8 shots, with 6 on target. Guinea-Bissau, for their part, had 48% possession, 12 shots with only 2 on target. Baciro Candé's men have plenty to regret, especially the penalty that was not awarded, which could have turned the match.
📹 𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦: 🇬🇶 4-2 🇬🇼
Emilio Nsue Lopez nets a historical hattrick as Equatorial Guinea cruise past Guinea-Bissau! #TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 | #EQGGNB | @Football2Gether
— CAF (@CAF_Online) January 18, 2024
