JOHANNESBURG // Tottenham Hotspur striker Emmanuel Adebayor put recent troubles behind him on Sunday to score a dramatic winner for Togo as Matchday 1 of 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying concluded.
The gangling 31-year-old forward struck three minutes from time to earn Togo a come-from-behind 2-1 Group A victory over fellow west Africans Liberia in Lome.
William Jebor had put the Liberia ahead late in the opening half and Sadat Ouro-Akoriko equalised midway through the second half.
Adebayor initially refused to team up with Togo, prompting his axing from the squad by Belgian coach Tom Saintfiet.
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But after watching Togo lose a friendly in Ghana six days ago, the 2008 African Footballer of the Year had a change of heart and once again proved a match-winner for his country.
The greatest Togolese footballer of the modern era told social media last month about a family feud over money that left him severely depressed.
Togo share first place with Tunisia, whose 8-1 drubbing of Djibouti in Rades on Friday was the biggest victory of the 25 qualifiers.
Vincent Aboubakar from Portuguese outfit Porto was another late match-winner, scoring in the final minute as Cameroon defeated Group M outsiders Mauritania 1-0 in Yaounde.
Cameroon dominated throughout, but some strange refereeing decisions and brave defending by the visitors kept the game scoreless.
Four-time African champions Cameroon lead by two points from South Africa and Gambia, who drew 0-0 on Saturday in Durban.
Ghana scored seven goals against hapless Mauritius on a poor Accra playing surface with Jordan Ayew and Asamoah Gyan bagging two goals apiece in a 7-1 Group H romp that was not unexpected.
Tunisia scoring eight goals, Ghana and Cape Verde seven each and Angola and Algeria four each came as no surprise because the opening fixtures included top seeds hosting bottom seeds in each mini-league.
The absence of injured playmaker Andre Ayew was barely felt as Ghana built a 5-1 half-time advantage with goalkeeper Kevin Jean-Louis helpless to prevent most of the goals.
Christian Atsu, voted the Most Valuable Player of the 2015 Cup of Nations in which Ghana finished runners-up behind the Ivory Coast, opened the scoring on 10 minutes.
Leicester City defender Jeffrey Schlupp and David Accam were the other Ghana scorers and Andy Sophie netted for Mauritius when his side were trailing by four goals.
The other match in the group did not go as expected with favoured hosts Mozambique losing 1-0 to Rwanda, whose goal from giant striker Ernest Sugira came just three minutes into the first half.
Record seven-time champions Egypt netted three times within 10 minutes to defeat Tanzania 3-0 in Borg El-Arab west of Alexandria and replace Nigeria as Group G leaders on goal difference.
Ramy Rabiea, Bassem Morsi and Mohamed Salah, the Chelsea striker on loan to Fiorentina, scored for a Pharaohs team desperate to avoid missing a fourth consecutive Cup of Nations finals.
Egypt failed to qualify for the 2012, 2013 and 2015 tournaments and Argentine coach Hector Cuper knows that if he does not stop the rot, unemployment is virtually guaranteed.
Nigeria, who also failed to qualify for the tournament in Equatorial Guinea this year after winning the previous edition, won 2-0 against visiting Chad in Kaduna on Saturday.
Kenya, long-time absentees from the biennial African football showpiece, held 2015 quarter-finalists Congo Brazzaville 1-1 in Owando.
Paul Were scored on 10 minutes for the visitors and Prince Oniangue converted a penalty awarded for handball before half time.
Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Niger and Sudan won narrowly at home and Equatorial Guinea were held by Benin in other matches.
Ivory Coast, who had a bye in three-team Group I, drew 0-0 away to 2017 hosts and automatic qualifiers Gabon in a friendly.
Matchday 2 fixtures are scheduled for the first weekend of September.
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PREMIER LEAGUE STATS
Romelu Lukaku's goalscoring statistics in the Premier League
Season/club/appearances (substitute)/goals
2011/12 Chelsea: 8(7) - 0
2012/13 West Brom (loan): 35(15) - 17
2013/14 Chelsea: 2(2) - 0
2013/14 Everton (loan): 31(2) - 15
2014/15 Everton: 36(4) - 10
2015/16 Everton: 37(1) - 18
2016/17 Everton: 37(1) - 25
Continental champions
Best Asian Player: Massaki Todokoro (Japan)
Best European Player: Adam Wardzinski (Poland)
Best North & Central American Player: DJ Jackson (United States)
Best African Player: Walter Dos Santos (Angola)
Best Oceanian Player: Lee Ting (Australia)
Best South American Player: Gabriel De Sousa (Brazil)
Best Asian Federation: Saudi Jiu-Jitsu Federation
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
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