The Mambas of Mozambique won their first-ever Africa Cup of Nations match after 17 matches in the tournament following a hard-fought 3-2 win over Gabon in their second Group F tie at the Ardrar Stadium in Agadir on Sunday.

Faisal Bangal opened the scoring for Mozambique in the 37th minute, when he headed home a corner kick cross from Geny Catamo to give Mambas the lead before Catamo doubled the advantage from the penalty spot five minutes later.

Former Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang pulled one back for Gabon just before the halftime break with a right-footed shot from inside the 18-yard box.

It took the Mozambicans barely seven minutes to score again in the second half thanks to a header from Diogo Calila, who directed a cross by Witi into the back of the net to make it 3-1.

Unfazed by the scoreline, the Gabonese continued their push to reduce the deficit and managed to further cut the advantage to one-goal in the 76th minute through Alex Moucketou-Moussounda’s shot from close range.

However, Mozambique successfully defended the lead for the remainder of the match to secure a historic win at the AFCON. The victory moved Mozambique to third in Group F and a draw in their last game against Cameroon could be enough to reach the round of 16.

“I am very proud to represent Mozambique and to have made my contribution to Mozambique’s first-ever victory at the Africa Cup of Nations. We are proud of this win,” Catamo, who was named the man of the match, said. 

“I hope this victory will cause us to keep working and bring more wins to our country. I ask the people to continue supporting us. We can go far, and our mindset is to keep pushing on in this tournament.”

Meanwhile, Sudan secured a tight 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca to earn their first win of this year’s AFCON. An own goal scored by Saul Coco in the 74th minute was enough to seal the victory for the 1970 African champions. 

Speaking after the match, Sudan head coach, James Appiah, said, “I am happy with the win, but our ambition is to win the title, not just to achieve a single victory. We have experienced players and their performance was strong. We faced some difficulties, but we always try to show good quality in our matches to achieve victories. I thank everyone who supported us in this match, especially the fans.

“When you take part in any tournament, the main ambition is to get through the group stage and go as far as possible. We achieved what mattered most, and we are mindful of these objectives of reaching the furthest stage possible. We are not here to just participate.”