Morocco boss Walid Regragui promised us Achraf Hakimi would make an appearance during the third pool match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. And he duly appeared in the second-half. Let the tournament commence!
Waiting for Achraf
His was an arrival eagerly anticipated. And it came in the 64th minute at the Stade Prince Moulay Abdellah in Rabat. Achraf Hakimi, golden boy of Moroccan football, stepped onto the pitch amid raucous cheers from the partisans in the stands. Hakimi was injured on 4 November while playing for his club Paris Saint-Germain against Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Luis Diaz chopped the poor lamb down just before half-time to leave Hakimi, who was celebrating his 27th birthday in tears on the deck. Restored, his smile was big and broad after the 3-0 victory over Zambia to take Morocco into the last-16.
Birthday boy
As Nigeria finalised their preparations for their Day 9 game against Uganda, star striker Victor Osimhen celebrated his 27th birthday. Prickly as relations are between Nigeria's finest sports reporters and Osimhen's boss, Eric Chelle, the chance to unite was clear and present. And one of the assembled hacks offered Chelle a sitter. Even though a defender in his playing days, Chelle did not miss the target. "I wish a lot of of good things for my striker ... my favourite striker," gushed Chelle. Praise continued as unbounded as Osimhen's appetite to humiliate defenders and goalkeepers. "For me, he is the best striker in the world. He's focused and I hope that this Africa Cup of Nations will be a great one for him." Absolutely no vested interests in that encomium.
You make me feel mighty real.
A good Africa Cup of Nations for Victor James Osimhen will, by extension, yield rewards for one Eric Sékou Chelle. The 48-year-old former Mali international took over Nigeria in January. And promptly failed to steer the team to the 2026 World Cup. "This is the football," Chelle relativised as he broached the third Group C game against Uganda and Tunisia's comeback from 3-0 down to 3-2 in the second pool match on 27 December. "If we can talk about the bad things, we can talk about the good things too." said Chelle. "The fact is we won 3-2. For sure we let Tunisia come back. But the reality? We want the reality. In two games we have scored five goals." Looking intently at the impertinent hack who questioned the side's defensive resolve, Chelle added: "You want the clean sheet? But me, I see the goals that we can score. Maybe in the last four games of the tournament, we score maybe between 10 and 12 goals." Eric, come back. Stay with us, Eric.
Dreamer
But there's nothing wrong with flights of fancy. Uganda boss Paul Put can attest to that. Back in 2013 at the Cup of Nations in South Africa, his Burkina Faso side were in the same group as Nigeria in Nelspruit. The Review carries fond memories of a hotel room adjacent to the swimming pool, wonderful food and attentive staff. As for the football pool, Burkina Faso drew with the Nigerians and enjoyed a dreamy run to the final in Johannesburg where they lost 1-0 to the Nigerians - incidentally their last continental crown. Put says he's not after revenge as Uganda seek victory over Nigeria on Day 9 to secure a place in the last-16. "I cannot go to my players and say: 'Because I lost in the final with Burkina Faso, now you have to do me a favour.' No. They are playing for their homeland. They know only one result is possible to progress." The Review was rather impressed by the absence of ego. With a twinkle in his eye, Put added mischievously: "But for me personally, it would be very nice if we could beat Nigeria. I would be very happy and I would invite all the players to dance with me." That would be a dream of a story.
Control freak-out
Paul Put's fellow Belgian, Hugo Broos, is having a fair old time of it at the helm of South Africa. He took them to third place at the last Cup of Nations in Cote d'Ivoire and after leading them to a berth at the 2026 World Cup, he has steered the side to second in Group B behind Egypt. They reached the last-16 at the 2025 extravaganza following a 3-2 win over Zimbabwe. But after the success over their southern African neighbours, Broos cut loose. "Once again we fell asleep after a good start," he fumed. "We continuously lost possession," added the 73-year-old. Broos took an unheralded Cameroon side to the 2017 title in Gabon. That conquest, he told The Review, was based on a squad camaraderie he had never witnessed in his 30-odd years of coaching. Of his new charges, he complained: "Our passing was bad at times and we should have concentrated on retaining possession in the closing minutes instead of seeking a fourth goal. We have to work on controlling games." Will they heed his words?
