Monrovia — Togo and Liberia get their quest for a place in the 2025 African Cup of Nations underway when they go head to head at the Stade de Kegue on today September 6, 2024.
Both sides, whose last encounter ended in a 2-2 draw back in June 2016, have been drawn in Group E and will battle with Equatorial Guinea and two-time African champions Algeria for a place in Morocco.
Togo failed to get up to running in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as they suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Congo DR when the two nations squared off on June 9.
In a very tough affair at the Stade des Martyrs, Young Boys striker Meschack Elis got on the score sheet in the sixth minute to put the home side in front before they turned in a solid defensive performance to protect their lead and see out the win.
Having played out consecutive stalemates against Sudan, Senegal and South Sudan in their opening three games, Togo have now failed to win any of their four matches in the World Cup qualifiers, claiming three points from a possible 12 to sit fourth in Group B.
The SparrowHawks now turn their attention to the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, where they will be looking to begin their quest for a place in Morocco on the front foot and end their eight-year absence from the continental showpiece.
Togo's last AFCON appearance came in Gabon 2017, when they finished at the bottom of Group C with one point from a possible nine, playing out a goalless draw with Ivory Coast in the opening game before suffering back-to-back defeats against Morocco and Congo DR.
Liberia for their part continued their push for a first-ever World Cup appearance as they secured a 1-0 victory over Sao Tome and Principe when the sides met on June 9.
Gaborone United Liberian midfielder Sheikh Sesay came off the bench for the visitors as he scored the only goal of the game in the 90th minute to hand Lone Star all three points at the Stade Municipal de Bohicon.
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Liberia have now picked up two wins and one draw from their four matches in Group H to collect seven points and sit third in the table, three points behind first-placed Tunisia in the automatic qualifying spot.
Head coach Mario Marinica will hope that his side can pick up where they left off in June as they start their 2025 AFCON qualifiers, after securing a 2-0 aggregate victory over Djibouti in the preliminary round back in March.
Having secured a 2-0 first-leg win against Djibouti on March 20, Liberia played out to a goalless draw at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in the return leg six days later to complete a 2-0 aggregate victory over the Shoremen of the Red Sea.
Liberia head into Friday's group opener unbeaten in each of their last five matches across all competitions, picking up three wins and two draws while scoring seven goals and keeping four clean sheets since a 1-0 loss against Malawi in November 2023.
