Ivory Coast needed two penalties to defeat Niger 1-0 Saturday in the last matchday one qualifier for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

Max-Alain Gradel missed the first spot-kick during the opening half after grabbing the ball from Arsenal forward Nicolas Pepe, who won the penalty and wanted to take it.

Out-of-favour AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie was entrusted with the second spot-kick, awarded for handball midway through the second half.

Niger goalkeeper Kassaly Daouda, who had brilliantly foiled Gradel, could not do it again, going the wrong way as Kessie planted the ball in the left corner.

It was an unconvincing performance by the 1992 and 2015 African champions, given they are ranked 56th in the world, 51 places above Niger.

Niger were playing for the first time under Frenchman Jean-Guy Wallemme who was only appointed last week.

The 52-year-old former defender previously coached Congo Brazzaville, three Algerian clubs and one in Morocco.

Ivory Coast share first place in Group K with Madagascar, who beat Ethiopia 1-0 in Antananarivo thanks to a first half goal from Rayan Raveloson.

Troyes netted on 19 minutes in Antananarivo for the hosts, who are ranked 95th in the world, 56 places above their rivals.

The Malagasy team were the surprise package of the 2019 Cup of Nations in Egypt, stunning Nigeria and surprising the Democratic Republic of Congo before losing to Tunisia in the quarter-finals.

Coach Nicolas Dupuis, who combines coaching Madagascar with managing a French lower league club, was rewarded with a new four-year contract.

He was satisfied with the tentative performance against Ethiopia given the poor state of the national stadium pitch and limited preparations.

“We need a new venue because the pitch we used today was unplayable,” said the 51-year-old who rose from obscurity to worldwide recognition during the 2019 tournament.

“Now we face a difficult trip before playing Niger on Tuesday. We must manage fatigue and will have insufficent time to prepare before the match in Niamey. We need to build on the work that has been done to show that hard work pays off,” stressed the 51-year-old.

Limited flights, seats and direct routes mean Madagascar, like many African national teams, face logistical headaches having to play two matches in a seven-day international window.

Some of the Malagasy squad left the vast Indian Ocean island at 0300 local time (midnight GMT) on Sunday while the rest followed 12 hours later.

“What pleased me about the victory over Ethiopia was our ability to defend a narrow advantage. That was a hallmark of our performances in the previous qualifying competition,” added Dupuis.

Meanwhile, a poor start by Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic as coach of Morocco continued when lower ranked Mauritania forced a 0-0 draw.

Morocco are ranked 42nd in the world, 63 places above Mauritania, and the barren deadlock left Halilhodzic with only one win from five matches since succeeding Herve Renard three months ago.

In warm-up matches at home for the Cup of Nations, the Atlas Lions beat Niger, were held by Burkina Faso and Libya and lost to Gabon.

Frenchman Renard twice failed to bring the Cup of Nations trophy to Morocco, whose lone success in the premier African national team competition came 43 years ago in Ethiopia.

Halilhodzic signed a four-year deal worth 80,000 euros ($89,000) monthly and the conditions included Morocco reaching at least the semi-finals of the 2021 Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

Failure to overcome Mauritania, who competed at the tournament for the first time this year, suggests much hard work lies ahead for the 67-year-old former Ivory Coast and Algeria boss.

There will be little time for Halilhodzic and his team to reflect on where they went wrong, however, as Morocco are away to bottom Group E side Burundi in Bujumbura Tuesday.

Central African Republic, who have never qualified for the Cup of Nations, top the table after a 2-0 home win over Burundi despite lacking injured Valencia midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia.

Tunisia, who finished fourth at the 2019 tournament in Egypt, made an impressive Group J debut by walloping north African neighbours Libya 4-1 in Rades near Tunis.

Agencies