By Harry Awurumibe, Africa’s No.1 Women’s Football Journalist
Bang, Bang, Bang… Free-scoring Aissatou Kouassi (No.12) who scored a hat-trick against Niger Republic on Monday celebrates with teammates. They face Super Falcons next.
Expectedly, Cote d Ivoire whitewashed hapless Niger 11-0 in the return leg match on the back of the 9-0 away win in the first leg tie of the first round of the qualifiers to move to the second round of the African Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCON) Morocco 2022, on 20-0 goals aggregate.
With that ridiculous scoreline, the ‘La Elephantes’ (Female Elephants) now have a date with Nigeria’s Super Falcons in the second round of the qualifiers slated for February 2022. This is even as the Ivoiren senior women’s football team stopped Nigeria from making it to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the third Olympic Games the Super Falcons have not made an appearance since 2012 in London.
Indeed, La Elephantes were more clinical in the return leg match inside Stade Robert Champroux, Abidjan on Monday as the bathed Nigeriens with goals as the match was reduced to a mere training session with striker
Aisata Kouassi scoring a hat-trick. She also scored a goal in Niamey.
Infact, Cote d’Ivoire went straight for goals from the first blast of the whistle as forward Madi Nrehy who also scored in the first leg scored again as early as in the 1′ before attacker Aureo Coulibaly scored a brsce in the 19′, 67′ respectively. But it was star player Kouassi who hugged the headlines by scoring a hat’trick in the match. She scored in the 44′, 79′, 85′ while the other goals were scored by Kakounan 30′; Guehai 35′; Aby 53′;
Elloh 62′ and Konan 80′ respectively.
A closer look at the Ivoiren team showed that another an attacking midfielder, Guehai also scored a hat-trick in the first leg away while defenders N’Guessan also scored a brace in the first leg just as Diakité scored one goal.
Super Falcons face Cote d Ivoire in Nigeria next February. They have to shape up or …
With 20 goals in two matches against another national team, it will be foolhardy for Super Falcons handlers to ignore La Elephantes as such attitude will be to their own detriment becouse the Ivoirens have shown that they can ruffle feathers when they come face to face with the reigning Champions that have suffered two losses in Grade A matches against Banyana Banyana of South Africa and Black Queens of Ghana.
Elsewhere, Gambia dispatched Sierra Leone by going through on 3-1 goals aggregate while Mali qualified 4-2 on goals aggregate at the expense of fellow West Africans Guinea, thanks to 2-0 home victory after the first leg tie ended 2-2. But in the return leg at General Lansana Conté Stadium in Conakry, the visitors got their goals from Aissatou Traoré 56′ and Aissatou Diarra 77′. Both also scored the Mali’s two goals in Bamako.
Also, Burkina Faso qualified for the second round with a 5-2 aggregate score after the Burkinabes went to Stade de l’Amitié, Cotonou to beat Benin Republic 3-1 after the first leg ended 2-1 in favour of Burkina Faso. More countries will qualify at the end of Tuesday as the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) fixed October 20 to 26 for the first and second legs of the first round matches of AWCON Morocco 2022.
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