Mafisango's death was confirmed by his Tanzanian club, Simba Sports Club.

State television station TBC said Mafisango died when the car he was driving crashed into a tree in the country's main city and commercial capital Dar es Salaam. Four passengers reportedly survived the accident.

Mafisango had been selected in Rwanda's squad for a World Cup qualifier against Algeria next month.

Ezekiel Kamwaga, spokesman for Tanzania champion Simba, said Mafisango's body would be flown to neighbouring Congo, where he was born, for burial on the wishes of his family.

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has called for Mikel to declare his readiness to feature for the team.

Mikel has yet to play for the Super Eagles since Keshi took charge of the side in November, but the coach insisted that the Chelsea ace remains very much part of his plans.

"Mikel is in my plans but we will give other players an opportunity as well," said Keshi on Thursday.

"We need to give players from the local league a chance. After all, how many knew about such players as Uche Kalu, Ejike Uzoenyi or Godfrey Oboabona before now?"

Austin Ejide, Fengor Ogude, Efe Ambrose, Elderson Echiejile and John Utaka have all been recalled in a group of 11 players based overseas, which also features Wigan Athletic forward Victor Moses.

Nigeria will name another squad of 18 players from the domestic league, who are due to fly out this weekend for a friendly in Peru.

The Super Eagles will host Namibia in a 2014 World Cup qualifier on June 3 in Calabar, before travelling to Malawi as the qualifying series continues the following weekend.

Nigeria is also due to host Rwanda in a second-leg qualifier for the 2013 Nations Cup to be hosted by South Africa.

Overseas-based players called up by Nigeria

Goalkeepers: Vincent Enyeama (Lille/FRA), Austin Ejide (Petach Tikva/ISR)

Defenders: Joseph Yobo (Fenerbache/TUR), Efe Ambrose (Ashdod/ISR), Elderson Echiejile (Sporting Braga/POR)

Midfielders: Fengor Ogude (Valrenga/NOR)

Forwards: Ike Uche (Granada/ESP), Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow/RUS), Sone Aluko (Rangers/SCO), John Utaka (Montpellier/FRA), Victor Moses (Wigan Athletic/ENG)

Essien, who missed this year's Africa Cup of Nations with injury, won't make his international return in June despite regaining full fitness with his English club. Marseille's Ayew was ruled out for three months in April after shoulder surgery.

New coach Kwesi Appiah also didn't include Gyan in his first selection of 30 players after the United Arab Emirates-based striker took an indefinite break from internationals after the African Cup.

Striker Ishmael Yartey of Benfica and midfielder Christian Atsu of Porto - who are both out on loan - were among six players called up for the first time.

"In spite of our concessions on 'points of disagreement' Alain Giresse did not wish to sign a new contract with the Federation," Femafoot vice-chairman Moussa Konate said.

Giresse, 59, signed a two-year deal in May 2010 and led the squad to third place at the Africa Cup of Nations having previously had a four-year stint in charge of Gabon.

The Frenchman's assistant Amadou Pathe Diallo will take over in an interim capacity.

The 22-year-old - who succeeds Ivorian Gervinho for his performances when Lille won the title last season - has been outstanding this season for Montpellier, which is on the verge of landing its first ever title.

Belhanda edged out Marseille's Cameroon defender Nicolas Nkoulou and Gabonese striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who plays for St-Etienne and was the joint top scorer at the Africa Cup of Nations.

The award is known as the Marc-Vivien Foe prize in memory of the Cameroon international who died during a Confederations Cup match in Lyon in June 2003.

The 62-year-old - who coached Cameroon to the 2000 Olympic gold medal and Africa Cup of Nations title - had been chosen ahead of around 60 candidates, including compatriot Bruno Metsu, who guided Senegal to the 2002 World Cup quarter-finals, to revive the national side's fortunes.

He had replaced Amara Traore, who was sacked after a disastrous Cup of Nations finals earlier this year when Senegal exited in the group phase.

However, Lechantre, who was out of contract with Qatari side Al Arabi, decided not to pursue the adventure any further on Thursday because of a lack of guarantees over the amount of the advance he wanted, according to sources within the FSF.

While they had reached agreement on a monthly salary of around 20,000 euros ($A26,000), the federation - which relies on the government to pay the salary - could only offer a three-month advance on his salary when Lechantre wanted six months up front just in case the qualifying campaign for next year's Africa Cup of Nations went sour.

Lechantre, African coach of the year in 2001, will be replaced in the interim by his assistant Joseph Koto, who must focus on the upcoming match with Liberia on June 2.

Yekini, who scored Nigeria's first ever FIFA World Cup goal 1994, died suddenly in Ira, Nigeria.

The striker, who played for Portuguese side Vitoria Setubal, Greek giant Olympiacos and Spanish team Sporting Gijon, is best remembered for his goals at the World Cup in the United States.

He scored his country's first World Cup goal in a 3-0 win over Bulgaria. His celebration, running into the goal and clutching the netting was one of the tournaments most memorable images.

CAF president Issa Hayatou said: "I remember him well - he was a solid attacker - it was so difficult to take the ball from him.

"His physical strength was impressive. His joviality made him an endearing character. He has made a mark on his generation and received recognition from the pantheon of African football.

"In these painful circumstances I want to send in my name and on behalf of all the executive committee and the entire African football family my deepest condolences to his people, the Nigerian Federation and all its supporters. May God bless his soul and comfort his family."

Yekini, who was named African Footballer of the Year in 1993, was top scorer as Nigeria won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations and also appeared at the 1998 World Cup.

The Cape Town stadium which was built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup two years ago will stand idle when the continental tournament is held in the country early in 2013.

Soccer City in Johannesburg, which hosted the World Cup final, will be the venue for the title decider as well as the opening fixture, South African minister of sport and recreation Fikile Mbalula confirmed.

Nelspruit, Rustenburg, Port Elizabeth and Durban will also stage matches. The official draw for the tournament will take place on 26 October.

State news agency APS quoted federation president Augustin Senghor as saying the accounts were frozen by a court order on Monday, the same day Senegal beat Oman 2-0 in an Olympic play-off to be the last team to qualify for the London Games.

Traore, who was fired after Senegal's poor performance and first-round exit at this year's African Cup of Nations, is seeking compensation for salaries owed, leave allowances and redundancy payments.

APS said a court this month ordered the federation to pay Traore US$72,000 but it hasn't yet paid him, leading the court to freeze its finances.

While Senegal's Olympic body is expected to largely finance the trip to London, money problems at the football federation would hamper its build-up.

No immediate comment was available from the federation on Tuesday, but Senghor, who was in England to watch the team qualify, told APS it could take time to regain control of the accounts.

"We cannot do anything, we have outstanding checks and we cannot make any financial transaction," Senghor said, according to APS.

Senegal's senior team is still without a coach after Traore was removed in February after losing all three games at the Cup of Nations.

Former mentor Bruno Metsu, who led Senegal to the quarter-finals at the 2002 World Cup, is one of two candidates for the job, according to the federation. The other is fellow Frenchman and ex-Cameroon coach Pierre Lechantre.

By sealing a first Olympic berth, Senegal will join fellow African countries Gabon, Morocco and Egypt in Tuesday's group draw at Wembley Stadium.

Goals by Ibrahima Balde and Abdoulaye Sane earned the victory for Senegal at Coventry's Ricoh Arena, one of six grounds that will host the men's and women's tournaments from 25 July to 11 August.

Oman, coached by former France midfielder Paul Le Guen, earned a final opportunity to reach the games after finishing above Syria and Uzbekistan in Asian qualifying.

Brazil, Spain, Britain and Mexico have been chosen as the seeded teams for the men's tournament draw that will separate the European teams and the countries from Latin America.

The Egyptian Football Association says that the Ministry of Interior won't allow Egyptian Cup games, scheduled from 30 April to 30 May, to go ahead because of security concerns.

The EFA says the ministry also wants court proceedings in connection with the deadly Port Said stadium riot to be completed before football resumes.

League games were called off last month after 74 people were killed in fan clashes at a game in the Mediterranean city on 1 February.

Around 75 suspects are on trial over the violence. The case was postponed until next month after disturbances in court last week.

Retired Judge Ahmed Ebrahim, heading a probe team formed by the Zimbabwe Football Association, on Sunday said some players and their local clubs are resisting inquiries into corruption on Asian tours.

Close to 100 players and officials have been suspended over allegations they accepted money from a betting syndicate to throw matches in Asia.

Zimbabwean teams lost 2-0 to Jordan, 3-0 to Thailand and 6-0 to Syria in Malaysia in 2009.

Ebrahim said that under the rules of the world governing body, FIFA, players are required to cooperate with investigators.

He said his disciplinary committee has gathered files and reports indicating those who were involved in criminal activities.

"We have a large base of knowledge of who participated and we may already be satisfied with who has done what," Ebrahim said.

"We have a good idea of the ring leaders ... the investigation must be thorough and impartial.

"There are very serious implications for individual players and officials, as well as for ZIFA itself, for the game of football and Zimbabwe's reputation."

The committee's hearings are being held behind closed doors to follow FIFA standards and protect innocent witnesses.

Ebrahim said preliminary hearings have indicated about 30 players may be exonerated.

"The final decision as to guilt and punishment rests with ZIFA and FIFA," he said.

He said there was no deadline for the probe to complete its work.

"We will be acting wrongly if we did a rushed job," Ebrahim said.

Former ZIFA chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya, named as the mastermind in the match-fixing scandal known locally as Asiagate, appeared in court in February on corruption and fraud charges. She was freed on bail.

It is alleged Rushwaya used feared secret agents connected to the country's long-time ruler, President Robert Mugabe, to manipulate players and coaches on the Asian tours.

Zimbabwean players have testified how money changed hands in dressing rooms at matches linked to betting agents of Wilson Raj Perumal, a Singaporean who is in jail in Finland for match-fixing.

In an interview with the official website of the FSF, federation president Augustin Sengor said: "We have a short list of five contenders, of whom we can say that two stand out."

He said Lechantre and Metsu 'meet our criteria and have the best experience of the African game of all the candidates'.

Metsu, 58, is available after being sacked by Qatari club Al Gharafa in March and has previous experience of coaching the Lions of Teranga having led them to the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup in 2002.

Lechantre is currently in charge of Qatari side Al Arabi but has significant experience of coaching in Africa, having won the African Cup of Nations with Cameroon in 2000.

He also led Cameroon to Olympic gold in Sydney that same year.

Senghor said the FSF would make a decision on the successor to Amara Traore - who was sacked after Senegal was eliminated from this year's Cup of Nations in the group stage - this week.

The 73 defendants, among them nine senior police officers, face charges relating to the riot after a match in the Mediterranean city of Port Said on 1 February.

The 30-minute killing frenzy broke out after a match between Cairo club Al-Ahly and local team Al-Masry.

Dressed in white inside a courtroom cage, the defendants on Tuesday chanted for 'justice' or 'death'.

Many face murder charges, while the officers have been charged with assisting the group from Al-Masry to attack fans of Al-Ahly, a club closely associated with Egypt's 2011 uprising.

Taiwo, who celebrates his 27th birthday on Monday, was just starting his career when African legend Nwankwo Kanu was lifting the league and FA Cup double with Arsenal in 2002.

The left-back has also witnessed international team-mate Jon Obi Mikel win a succession of honours with Chelsea and play in a UEFA Champions League final.

Even striker Ayegbeni Yakubu can point to a League Cup winners' medal from his days at Middlesbrough and Taiwo is confident he can add to the impressive list of silverware won by Super Eagles stars.

Former AC Milan and Marseille left-back Taiwo said: "It is easier for Nigerian players because you don't need to learn the language unlike when you go to Italy or Spain.

"All the big players we have like Jay Jay Okocha, Kanu, Yakubu, Peter Odemwingie and Jon Obi Mikel have done well in England.

"When I left Marseille to go to Milan we won the Super Cup. It is a joy if you win because when you go out in the city people shout your name.

"I am really happy for people like Kanu and Mikel, who won the FA Cup because when you win titles in your career that is what people will write about in the future."

Taiwo's future, like that of QPR's, remains unclear.

His loan spell from Milan expires at the end of the season and if the London club does not win its fight against relegation the Lagos-born left-back will be looking for his fourth club in little over a year.

Taiwo has already seen enough to suggest his all-action style can help him carve a long-term future in the Premier League.

"In England maybe you have to wait for six months to adapt to the Premier League," he says.

"The Premier League is like basketball. You keep moving forward and back and that is why it is the top league in the world.

"I am very happy to be here with the team and players. They have really welcomed me.

"I am here to work very hard, to make us get good things. It will be lovely if we can stay up.

"All Africans watch the Premier League and in Nigeria you see fans of Arsenal, Manchester United, Man City and Chelsea."

Taiwo's struggles with QPR replicate those of his national team. Nigeria followed a disappointing showing at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa by failing even to qualify for the African Cup of Nations.

Taiwo is confident recently-appointed coach Stephen Keshi can reverse that slump in fortunes.

He added: "The problem with the national team is the manager keeps changing all the time. If you want to win something you will not get anywhere like this.

"All the managers are going to bring in their own set of people and new tactics all the time.

"It was really sad we did not qualify for the African Nations Cup because Nigeria is a very big country.

"The manager we have now is very clever. He is always talking and always aggressive because he does not like to lose.

"We are looking forward to qualifying for the next African Nations Cup. That is our focus."

The Dar es Salaam outfit lost 3-1 at 2009 runner-up Entente Setif in western Algeria, but squeezed into the third qualifying round on the away goal rule having triumphed 2-0 at home two weeks ago.

Simba suffered an early blow as centre-back Juma Nyoso was sent off and fell behind on 35 minutes when Mohamed Amine Aoudia scored his first goal for the Black Eagles.

He rose highest in the penalty area to nod a lobbed pass under the body of goalkeeper and captain Juma Kaseja and struck again just after half-time by springing an offside trap and flicking the ball past the onrushing custodian.

Former African champion Setif was dominant and Mokhtar Benmoussa made it 3-0 before the hour mark via a low shot from inside the box that flew under the diving Kaseja.

All seemed lost for Simba until one minute into added time when Uganda-born Okwi drilled a 25-metre shot past Mohamed Benhamou to secure a second-round showdown with Al Ahly Shendy of Sudan or Ferroviario Maputo of Mozambique.

Also through are South African side Black Leopards, which led and trailed before snatching a last-gasp 2-2 draw away to Saint Eloi Lupopo of the Democratic Republic of Congo in southern mining city Lubumbashi.

Zimbabweans scored for each side with Carrington Gomba cancelling an early David Zulu goal for Leopards and Kenneth Nkhatha levelling in the final minute after Kitumbo Mpiana had nudged Lupopo in front.

Trailing 4-2 from the first leg, Lupopo laid siege to the Leopards goalmouth for much of the final quarter, knowing a third goal would take it through on the away-goal rule.

But Nkhatha broke Congolese hearts with his strike as relegation-threatened Leopards from the north-eastern Limpopo province defied the odds having upset Motor Action of Zimbabwe in a preliminary tie.

Next up for Leopards is Warri Wolves, which ended the giant-killng dreams of Sierra Leone visitor FC Kallon with a 2-0 win in south-east Nigeria courtesy of second-half goals from Gift Atulewa and Michael Okoyoh.

The Freetown club - owned by former Monaco and Inter Milan midfielder Mohamed Kallon - shocked Union Douala of Cameroon in the previous round before being held goalless at home by Wolves.

Jean Michael Seri netted twice during the first half to propel 1998 CAF Champions League winner ASEC Mimosas of Cote d'Ivoire to a 2-0 victory over Etoile Filante of Burkina Faso in Abidjan after a drawn first encounter.

Somali FA president Said Mohamed Nur and Somali Olympic Committee president Aden Yabarow Wiish died after the blast at the newly reopened national theatre during a ceremony on Wednesday in Mogadishu.

"I am shocked to hear about the attack that has today taken the lives of several people in Mogadishu, including the president of the Somali Football Federation Said Mohamed Nur and Somali Olympic Committee president Aden Yabarow Wiish," a FIFA statement quoting Blatter read.

"I knew both men personally and can only say good things about their endless efforts to promote sport and football in their country. They will be sorely missed.

"At this very sad time, my thoughts and those of FIFA and the worldwide football community are with the families and loved ones of all the victims of this attack, and especially to the football and sport family of Somalia."

The two officials had only recently inspected the reconstruction of the national stadium in Mogadishu after years of civil war in Somalia.

Ali Muse, the head of Mogadishu's ambulance service, says at least 10 people were killed and dozens wounded in the blast.

Ugandan Emmanuel Okwi broke the deadlock 75 minutes into the first leg of a last-32 tie and Zambian Felix Sunzu raised his competition goal tally this season to three by adding a second soon after in Dar es Salaam.

Simba coach Milovan Cirkovic lavished praise on 2009 runner-up Setif before the game and the triumph is a major boost for Tanzanian football after the early exit of Young Africans from the CAF Champions League.

A Sunzu brace enabled Simba to scrape past Kiyovu Sports of Rwanda in the preliminary round while 1988 African champion Setif was among 16 clubs to receive a bye.

African rookie Hwange of Zimbabwe came from behind to snatch a 1-1 draw at home to Al Amal from Sudan with Rodwell Chinyengetere levelling just before half-time after Mohd Adam gave the east African side an early advantage.

The match provided a reality check for the Zimbabwean club based at a colliery in the north west of the country after it fired seven goals past Zanzibar outfit Jamhuri to reach the second qualifying phase.

CS Sfaxien of Tunisia, the only club to lift the Confederation Cup twice since its 2004 inception in place of the African Cup Winners Cup and CAF Cup competitions, looks set to advance after winning in Congo Brazzaville.

The team from Mediterranean city Sfax triumphed 2-1 over AC Leopards in Dolisie with Maher Haddad and Guinean Naby Soumah scoring before Loseni Komara pulled one goal back from a penalty kick on the half-hour mark.

Tana Formation of Madagascar surprised 2011 semi-finalist InterClube of Angola 2-0 in Antananarivo via goals from Ferdinand Ramanamahefa and Tojo Claudel Fanomezana.

Malagasy football is in a deep state of depression after a series of heavy losses at national team and club level and desperately needed the boost that debutant Tana delivered.

Both Malian sides lost away with Cercle Olympic Bamako conceding a goal in added time to fall 3-2 in Chad against Renaissance while Real Bamako was defeated 1-0 by Gamtel in Gambia.

FIFA said elections for a new Gambia Football Association board must be held by the end of September.

The minister of sport, Alieu Jammeh, dissolved the former FA board following a home defeat to Algeria in an African Cup qualifier this month.

It prompted football's international governing body to warn of "severe sanctions" against Gambia for government interference.

But a compromise has been reached after FIFA president Sepp Blatter and secretary general Jerome Valcke met with Jammeh.

FIFA says Blatter has nominated a seven-member GFA "normalisation committee" to organise the elections.

Stevanovic, who was appointed in January 2011, appears to have paid the price for the Black Stars' failure to reach the final of the African Cup of Nations last month.

Ghana made it to the last four but went down to eventual winner Zambia. It then lost the third-place play-off 2-0 to Mali.

A statement from the Ghana FA read: "The Ghana Football Association has parted company with Goran Stevanovic as the Black Stars coach today.

"This comes after three weeks of extensive meetings to ensure that the best decision is taken in the best interest of the nation."

Ghana FA president Kwesi Nyantakyi said: "We would like to express our gratitude to the general public for their concerns about the national team and their patience so far."

Assistant coach Kwegsi Appiah has been asked to take temporary charge until a permanent successor is found.

The GFA says Stevanovic was held up in his native Serbia while he waited for a new passport, forcing it to reschedule Tuesday's meeting.

Stevanovic has been under pressure for his job after Ghana lost to eventual champion Zambia in the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations and then Mali in the third-place match.

The GFA has not hid the fact that Stevanovic's future in charge of the World Cup quarter-finalist is in doubt after a disappointing Cup of Nations.

GFA president Kwesi Nyantakyi says Stevanovic is now expected in Ghana on Thursday and will meet association officials on Friday.

The tiny West African country faces a showdown with FIFA after its Sports Ministry dissolved the Gambia Football Association this month in the wake of a 2-1 home loss to Algeria in an African Cup of Nations qualifier.

The ministry set up a temporary committee and plans to send a delegation to meet FIFA in Switzerland next week to present its case for a newly-elected GFA executive, which it deems as necessary to improve its football setup.

But FIFA said it won't recognise nor meet a government-appointed football body and will discuss the situation internally this week.

Gambia is the latest African country to be in trouble with FIFA for government interference.

Nigeria, Togo, Ghana and most recently Egypt have all been warned by FIFA for allowing politics to encroach on football. Nigeria was briefly suspended from FIFA in 2010, while Egypt was accused of government interference when the country's prime minister fired football association officials in February after the deadly stadium riots in Port Said.

FIFA told Gambia's FA in a letter that it must act independently or face punishment.

"FIFA underlines that any action taken against the GFA's executive committee would constitute a clear governmental interference and therefore infringe the FIFA statutes, which could lead to severe sanctions," the sport's ruling body told The Associated Press. "FIFA informs the GFA that the alleged decision by the Gambian Ministry of Youth and Sport would not be recognised and/or condoned in any way.

"In particular, no governmental-instituted 'interim committee' would be recognised and/or dealt with by FIFA."

Sanctions would likely include Gambian clubs being thrown out of African competitions and the national team being prevented from playing in Cup of Nations and World Cup qualifiers in June.

Gambia broke FIFA rules when sports minister Alieu Jammeh disbanded the GFA executive and fired its president, Seedy Kinteh, on 2 March after the loss to Algeria in the first leg of its Cup of Nations qualifier.

"This is a new era, we are looking for higher objectives," Jammeh said at the time. "We are thinking big and, in our assessment, we are saying they (the GFA executive) don't fit into that equation."

Jammeh has since insisted that the reforms will go ahead after Gambia failed to qualify for the 2012 Cup of Nations. The team's coach was fired at the start of the year.

"Our objective is to strengthen football ... we are not going to put in jeopardy the interests of this country for anybody," Jammeh said.

The Gambian delegation is expected to travel to Zurich on Monday, although it's still uncertain if it will be able to meet with FIFA.

FIFA could decide on the GFA's fate before 23 March, when Gambia's Brikama United host defending champion Esperance of Tunisia in the African Champions League. Another Gambian club, Gamtel FC, is scheduled to play in Africa's Confederations Cup on the same weekend.

The league was suspended after the deadly stampede on 1 February in Port Said after a match between Al-Ahly and Al-Masry.

Egyptian FA spokesman Azmy Megahed says the season will not resume because there is not enough time to play the games before the national team is expected to begin training for the 2013 African Cup of Nations qualifiers and this year's London Olympics.

But Megahed said on Saturday that 18 teams will play in a friendly tournament in empty stadiums to raise money for the families of those killed in the violence.

FIFA says it has written to the Gambia FA insisting it has not 'recognised and/or condoned' the Gambian Ministry of Youth and Sport's decision.

"In particular, no governmental instituted 'interim committee' would be recognised and/or dealt with by FIFA," the governing body of football said.

FIFA has asked the elected officials who have been ousted to report on their situation by Thursday.

"Upon expiry of this deadline, the submission of the present case to FIFA's Emergency Committee will be evaluated," FIFA warned.

The emergency panel chaired by FIFA president Sepp Blatter can suspend countries from world football if it decides that governments have interfered in running the sport.

The ministry fired Gambia FA officials last Friday after the national team lost 2-1 to Algeria in the home leg of a 2013 Cup of Nations qualifier.

"FIFA underlines that any action taken against the GFA's executive committee would constitute a clear governmental interference and therefore infringe the FIFA Statutes which could lead to severe sanctions," the warning letter read.

Suspension from world football prevents teams and officials, at national and club level, from taking part in international matches and meetings.

FIFA also cuts off funding and grants.

The dispute could stop Gambian club Brikama United playing in the African Champions League against defending champion Esperance of Tunisia.

The teams are scheduled to meet in the first leg of the first round on the weekend of 23-25 March.

Gambia's national team is next due to play on 1 June against Morocco in a friendly. The return match against Algeria is scheduled for 15 June.

The Gambia FA is led by president Seedy Kinteh, who is a member if FIFA's development committee, which allocates millions of dollars in project funding each year.

The 36-year-old was introduced by coach Bob Bradley with 14 minutes left in Qatar capital Doha to win his 179th cap and overtake retired Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Mohammed Al Deayea.

Hassan thought he had reached the magical mark in a 5-0 rout of Kenya two days ago, but the east Africans sent an Under-23 squad so the match was not an official international.

His joy at reaching the milestone was tinged with sadness as he admitted to still being traumatised by the deaths of 74 fans after a league match in Port Said this month.

It was the biggest Egyptian sporting tragedy and several national team stars, including Mohammed Abou Treika, Mohamed Barakat and Emad Moteab, reacted by announcing their retirements.

"Of course I am happy with the achievement, but my happiness is not complete. I am still saddened by the death of Al Ahly fans in the Port Said disaster," Hassan told his website.

"I have waited for this achievement for so long, but I hoped to get it in better circumstances," added the model professional whose club career spanned several in Egypt and Turkey plus Belgian outfit Anderlecht.

Hassan, who replaced Sunderland midfielder Ahmed Al Mohamady and squandered a chance to score a second goal for the Pharaohs late in the game, said he had no intention of hanging up his boots.

"My career with Egypt is not over yet. Some people said I carried on playing with the national team to reach a personal achievement, but this is completely untrue."

Former United States coach Bradley, appointed late last year to succeed three-time African Cup of Nations winner Hassan Shehata, lavished praise on the record breaker.

"Ahmed Hassan has been a winner in his career, a footballer who leads by example and plays with energy and commitment," he told a post-match Doha media conference.

"The record is something every Egyptian must be proud of and has been earned after a great career. He has been such an important member of the national team for so many years."

Egypt, whose Cup of Nations qualifier with the Central African Republic was postponed until June because of the security situation, is scheduled to play Lebanon on 5 March in Beirut.

From Manchester United to Barcelona, Real Madrid to AC Milan and Schalke, players from top clubs will wear 'Sahel Emergency' T-shirts ahead of their matches of the 31 March weekend to alert millions of fans in stadiums and on television about the life-threatening situation in Africa.

European Union Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva says the awareness effort by the professional players alone causes a spike in contributions to non-governmental organisation working to alleviate hunger.

Drogba, who missed a penalty in the African Cup of Nations final earlier this month, will not be joining club-mate Salomon Kalou at the midweek game in Abidjan due to a knee injury.

A club statement, released on www.chelseafc.com, read: "As a result of an injury suffered to his right knee in the game against Bolton Wanderers on Saturday, the forward (Drogba) will not be linking up with Ivory Coast and will receive treatment at Cobham over the coming week, where Chelsea medical staff will monitor his progress."

Stevanovic's astonishing accusation of deep divisions in the Black Stars' ranks emerged from a leaked review of the team's performance in Gabon where Ghana was knocked out by eventual winner Zambia in the semi-finals.

"We all need to help in changing some players' mentality about using 'black power' to destroy themselves, and also make sure we instil discipline and respect for each other," the coach said, according to the BBC.

In a report delivered to the Ghana Football Association's (GFA) executive committee, Stevanovic added: "After losing to Zambia, there arose so many accusations amongst the players.

"I have learnt great lessons from African football and also about Ghanaian players' behaviour on and off the field."

Sarfo Gyami, part of the Ghana side at the 1992 cup, said: "It has always happened, but players have used it to protect themselves and normally in search of luck.

"I have never heard of a situation when players have used it against their own colleagues. That is a very bad situation."

Despite outward signs of unity both Stevanovic and GFA president Kwesi Nyantakyi suggest the reality at the 2012 cup was very different.

"During the competition we observed that some players played to achieve personal fame, prominence and excellence to the detriment of the team," Nyantakyi told a press conference this week.

"We also had complaints from some senior players, accusing some of the junior ones of disrespect."

Stevanovic's accusation indicate he may have trouble holding on to his post. The GFA is in the process of reviewing his contract, but he will still be in charge when Ghana plays Chile in a friendly in the United States next week.

The Real Madrid star, whose father is Tunisian, posed for the erotic pictures in GQ magazine, but the journalists from Tunisian newspaper Attounissia were arrested for allegedly offending public morality.

"I heard about the matter on Thursday evening and find it very, very sad and unfortunate that such a thing happened," the 24-year-old Khedira told German newspaper Bild.

"I respect the different religions that exist and also the faith that people have, but I cannot understand that people cannot express themselves freely."

The GQ pictures show the couple in various states of undress while one shot shows only Khedira's arm covering the breasts of his girlfriend.

The 26-year-old Sunderland striker, currently on loan at Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates, is unhappy at the 'verbal abuse' that came his way during the recent African Cup of Nations.

"The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has received a letter from striker Asamoah Gyan announcing his decision to take a temporary break from the Black Stars," read a statement on www.ghanafa.org

"Mr Gyan is frustrated over the verbal abuse he has received since playing for the country at the 2012 African Nations Cup.

"The GFA is in talks with Mr Gyan to urge him to reconsider his decision."

Gyan missed an early penalty, and a host of other chances, as eventual winner Zambia edged Ghana 1-0 earlier this month in the Cup of Nations semi-finals.

He also missed a crucial spot-kick in the dying seconds of extra-time in Ghana's 2010 FIFA World Cup quarter-final against Uruguay, with the South Americans going on to advance in the shootout.

The African nation finished last in Pool B of the biennial continental tournament after losing all of its three group matches.

"At the current time you have to acknowledge there is no life in the team and confidence in the coach is low. That's why we've decided to end our association with coach Duarte," Burkinabe Football Federation (FBF) president Zambede Theodore Sawadogo told national television on Friday.

Duarte's contract had been due to expire on March 31.

The Portuguese coach - dubbed the 'African Mourinho' - took over in 2008, and led Burkina Faso to the 2010 and 2012 Cup of Nations but they never got past the first round.

During this year's tournament which ended last weekend he clashed with FBF leaders over problems in the organisation.

It is the first time since February 2001 that the team, coached by Herve Renard, have made it into the top 50.

Nineteen years after a plane crash which killed 18 members of its squad in Libreville, the Chipolopolo returned to the Gabon capital to record the most famous victory in the country's history with an 8-7 penalty shootout win over Cote d'Ivoire.

The Ivorians remained Africa's top team, up three places to 15th, while third-placed Mali climbed 25 spots to 44th.

Spain stayed top of the pile with Germany rising one place to second at the expense of the Netherlands.

Portugal, Italy and Denmark climbed one spot each to sixth, eighth and 10th respectively, the latter pushing Argentina down to 11th position.

The Chipolopolo beat the Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties after a goalless final on Sunday night in Libreville - the scene of a plane crash 19 years ago, en route to a World Cup qualifier against Senegal, which defines the country's modern footballing history.

The Zambia national team's plane crashed into the sea shortly after a refuelling stop, killing 18 players - Efford Chabala, Richard Mwanza, John Soko, Whiteson Changwe, Robert Watyakeni, Estone Mulenga, Derby Makinka, Moses Chikwalakwala, Wisdom Chansa, Kelvin Mutale, Timothy Mwitwa, Numba Mwila, Samuel Chomba, Moses Masuwa, Kenani Simambe, Godfrey Kangwa, Winter Mumba and Patrick Banda - along with Zambian Football Association president Michael Mwape and coaches Godfrey Chitalu and Alex Chola.

Star player Kalusha only survived as he had travelled separately from Holland, where he was playing for PSV Eindhoven. Now the Zambian FA president, Kalusha joined the current squad as they paid tribute in a ceremony on the Beach Sabliere ahead of the final.

Renard told ESPN Soccernet after Sunday's poignant triumph: "Kalusha was one of the best Zambian players of the last century. Then he was coach of the national team, now our president.

"He survived the crash - he was supposed to have been on that plane which was going to play a World Cup qualifier against Senegal. He knows how terrible this crash was for the nation. I want to dedicate this title to him."

He added: "We wanted to honour the dead players and that strengthened us.

"Our first game (in this year's tournament) was against Senegal and the team was on its way to Senegal for a match when the plane crashed. The plane crashed in Gabon and we won the final in Gabon.

"It was a sign of destiny, written in the sky. There was a force with us. I think God has helped us and given us strength."

It was Zambia's first Nations Cup title and its third final, including in 1994 when Kalusha led a makeshift squad to within one hurdle of glory.

"I said to the players that a team of 'replacements' took Zambia to the final in 1994, so why not us?" said Renard. "We always believed and said this was our time.

"Winning on penalties is perhaps not the best way, but we cannot complain. It is cruel for the Ivory Coast, but we deserved it.

"We will savour this moment, we have made a permanent mark on Zambian football history."

Zambia needed two opportunities to seal victory in the shoot-out, with Rainford Kalaba failing to capitalise on Kolo Toure's miss before Stophira Sunzu punished Gervinho's wayward spot-kick.

"(My penalty) was supposed to be the winning goal," Kalaba said on the Zambian FA's website. "These things happen in football, but then you have to move on.

"You just have to forget about the past and concentrate on the future."

That he did, as he enjoyed his team's emotional celebrations.

"We wanted to honour the players that died here, so that the families of the deceased players can feel much better and I am pleased we achieved that," he said. "I have been dreaming about this wonderful moment."

The Elephants had the better of the chances in normal time, with Didier Drogba missing from the spot and Yaya Toure and Max Gradel going close.

And coach Francois Zahoui said: "We had chances to score and we didn't take them. We did not know how to kill off the match and Zambia took confidence from that.

"We knew it would be a difficult final, Zambia wanted the trophy like us and they were not there by chance."

Goalkeeper Boubacar Barry added: "It's disappointing but it's not the end of the world. We finished as the best defense and the best attack, so it's frustrating, but we must learn the lessons of this tournament."

Hayatou was defending CAF against criticism at some of the desperately low crowds seen at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.

While bumper attendances turned up to follow co-hosts Gabon and Equatorial Guinea whenever they played, elsewhere it was a markedly different picture.

A paltry 132 fans went to the game between Sudan and Burkina Faso in the 30,000-seater Bata stadium, while row upon row of empty seats was an altogether too frequent sight at many other games.

But Hayatou said: "What can CAF do? We want stadia to be full but no force in the world can go into homes and tell people 'Go to the stadium'.

"In Africa, but it must be the same in Europe, when the organising country's team is knocked out, enthusiasm drops.

"Whilst these teams were still in it, we had full stadia.

"But from the moment when they were eliminated (at the quarter-final stage for both the co-hosts), people are disappointed.

"Neither the political power, nor the police, nor CAF, nor journalists can get people to go the stadium; let's be realistic."

He did, however, recognise that the problem needed to be addressed for forthcoming editions of the cup, with the next one in South Africa in 2013.

He suggested one way to solve the problem would be "to appeal to children in schools".

Egypt got round the problem of low attendance when they hosted the 2006 edition by filling up their stadia with military personnel.

"But the press criticised that, saying 'they weren't fans'," he explained.

"Like as if the military weren't men. The Egyptian army paid for the tickets to give to the officers who went to the stadia.

"It's always 'fair game' to attack Africa but there are other countries whose stadia are only two thirds full," he concluded.

Africa's football body has accepted the application by the South Sudan Football Association to become its 54th member, meaning South Sudan is now recognised as an international team.

South Sudan gained independence in April 2011.

In the presence of FIFA President Sepp Blatter and his CAF counterpart Issa Hayatou, a delegation from the SSFA was presented with a CAF flag to fly at their headquarters in Juba.

Delegates at CAF's General Assembly meeting in Libreville then stood for the world's newest country's national anthem.

"We are proud to have you as a member and now we would like to see you in our tournaments," Hayatou said. "We are delighted to have you."

The delegation, which included federation president Oliver Benjamin and the country's minister of sport, also handed over South Sudan's national flag, which will now join the 53 others that CAF flies at its official gatherings and events.

"Greetings and thanks to all of you from the football fans and its federation," Benjamin said.

SBS will show the final live from 6.30am on Monday

Cote d'Ivoire will go into the final in Libreville's Stade de l'Amitie as overwhelming favourite, but then Ghana was also favoured to beat Zambia in the semi-finals and failed.

For Zambia, the final is of special significance as it takes place in the same city where 18 members of the national team perished 19 years ago, when their plane crashed into the sea 500 metres from the coast.

Kalusha Bwalya, who was captain of the national team at the time but was not on the flight, having made his own travelling arrangements from the Netherlands, where he was playing for PSV Eindhoven, said that the entire Zambian delegation felt connected to the past.

"It is a big surprise to come to Libreville as a finalist. Nobody gave us a chance to make the final, but fate has been good to us. The fallen heroes dreamed about the final. We are now dreaming to bring glory to our country," said Bwalya, who is now president of Zambia's football association.

"I hope we can finish it the way we have been playing it in previous matches. It will be important for us. I hope the players will rise to the occasion."

French coach Herve Renard's squad features mainly African-based players, with captain Christopher Katongo, who plays in China for Henan Construction, being the man for goals up front.

Whether Katongo and his striking partners find a way through the Elephants' defence remains to be seen.

The last man to score against the Ivorians was South Africa's Katlego Mphela, who equalised for his side in the 1-1 draw in November. Since then, the side has played seven matches without conceding a goal.

But it is not only the back that coach Francois Zahoui can depend upon, as his forward line is the envy of most other coaches at the competition.

Salomon Kalou, Gervinho and Didier Drogba play their club football at the highest level in England. Add the Kolo brothers Yaya and Toure to the mix and it is clear why the Elephants are clear favourites.

They are looking to lift their second trophy after 1992 - when they won the competition without conceding a goal in five matches.

Chelsea striker Kalou says Cote d'Ivoire will not underestimate the Zambians: "They are a really good team, and it's going to be a very tough game."

Zahoui said that while he understands the emotions behind the game for Zambia, his side faces a similar situation, after bloody conflict to remove a president who refused to leave office.

"Our country has been going through a troubled time, and football can help to heal the wounds," Zahoui said.

"If we can bring home the trophy to Ivory Coast, it will mean so much to the people of our country."

More than 70 people were killed in the clashes after the match between Al Masry and Al Ahly on 1 February.

FIFA announced it would be contributing to a fund set up by Al Ahly.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said: "I stated after the tragedy that this day was a black day for football.

"I'm still very shocked by what happened. Many of the victims were so young. They were also a crucial support for their families, who now need help.

"The football community, including FIFA, must assist its Egyptian brothers and sisters."

FIFA demanded a full report into the incident, with some reports suggesting Egyptian security forces did not do enough to intervene.

ZIFA said on Tuesday Mapeza's assistant coach Joey Antipas was also suspended.

Rahman Gumbo was appointed interim coach while ex-Zimbabwe international and Coventry City forward Peter Ndlovu was one of two new assistant coaches.

ZIFA chief executive Jonathan Mashingaidze said the board had decided 'to suspend everyone involved in the match-fixing scandal' and Mapeza and Antipas had to step down until they were cleared.

In a 2011 report, ZIFA said Antipas had admitted in sworn statements to taking money to lose games.

Egypt's football federation president and his board were dismissed by the prime minister immediately after Wednesday's Port Said rampage.

Bradley, a former coach of the US national team, told broadcaster Al-Jazeera that: "when a tragedy like this occurs it's important that people can come and can be strong."

He added: "In my role as coach of the national team I want to do whatever I can in my responsibilities to help with this process."

Bradley is unsure if Egypt's 2013 African Cup of Nations qualifier will go ahead in the Central African Republic as planned on February 29.

Cote d'Ivoire's star-studded squad has won all four matches without conceding a goal in its quest for a first cup success in 20 years, while Ghana, the losing finalist two years ago, is looking for a fifth title.

Ghana must first beat Zambia, which has enjoyed an impressive cup campaign so far and is motivated to make the final in Libreville in memory of 25 players and officials who died in a plane crash near the Gabonese capital 19 years ago.

Cote d'Ivoire's opponent, Mali, is bidding to reach its first final after having beaten co-host Gabon on penalties in the quarterfinals.

The Sunday Times claimed matches against Thailand, Bulgaria, Guatemala and Colombia may have been fixed by Singaporean Wilson Raj Perumal, who is serving a two-year jail term in Finland for fixing matches there.

Perumal reportedly arranged the friendlies for South Africa on condition that he appoint the match officials as an under-prepared national squad desperately sought matches ahead of the global tournament.

A South African Football Association released a statement on Monday that revealed world governing body FIFA was pleased that Safa has discontinued a practice of engaging agents to source referees.

FIFA appoints referees for World Cup qualifiers and continental body CAF chooses them for Cup of Nations fixtures, leaving host countries to select officials for friendlies.

"The association took a decision to revert to appointing referees (for friendlies) through our sister football associations as this will ensure full control and integrity of outcomes of all matches," the statement read.

A number of dubious penalties were awarded in the 5-0 win over Guatemala - a record victory margin for the South African national team - and a 2-1 triumph over Colombia.

Referees from Niger, Togo and Kenya handled the four warm-ups which triggered surprise as South Africa normally uses match officials from countries in the region.

The Sunday Times claimed the Nigerian referee was also scheduled to handle a friendly against Denmark, but concerned Safa officials replaced him with a local at the last minute.

Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) officials believe Perumal may have been the mastermind behind allegedly fixed matches involving the national team and a club side between 2007 and 2009 on tours of Malaysia and Thailand.

Former Zifa chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya was arrested in Harare last week on charges of corruption, bribery and match-fixing and was granted bail Monday.

Her arrest came days after 82 footballers implicated in the 'Asiagate' scandal were barred from representing the country, and Zifa suspended three board members last year in a related move.

Henrietta Rushwaya was freed on $US500 ($A467) bail on Monday. She was ordered to reappear in a Zimbabwean court on February 20.

Rushwaya was arrested on Thursday last week after being accused of working with an Asian betting syndicate to organise several fixed matches when the Zimbabwe national team toured Asia between 2007 and 2009.

A ZIFA investigation concluded Rushwaya was the mastermind behind the fixes and allegedly used secret agents connected to the country's longtime ruler, President Robert Mugabe, to manipulate players and coaches on the tours to Asia.

Rushwaya is alleged to have received "huge payouts" from the betting syndicates, according to the investigation.

Rushwaya denies the allegations, labelling them "false" after making a brief appearance in a Harare court on Monday.

"I want to make a plea to those who have been involved to come clean and provide the nation with answers," said Rushwaya, who was fired by ZIFA in October 2010 for mismanagement before the fixing investigations were concluded.

"It is nice that the case has started."

The scandal has resulted in the suspension of more than 80 players - most of them internationals - by the Zimbabwean FA. The tally is expected to rise as investigations continue.

Zimbabwe's then-national team captain, three teammates and a coaching staff member admitted in sworn statements that they had been paid to lose games on a tour to Malaysia and Thailand in 2009.

The team lost 2-0 to Jordan, 3-0 to Thailand and 6-0 to Syria, and players told of how representatives of the betting syndicates were even present in the team's dressing room at halftime of one match to give instructions on how the game should go. Games on tours in 2007 and 2008 were also said to be fixed.

"She (Rushwaya) wielded so much power in the association to become untouchable and a mini-god and could manipulate players and coaches alike to do her will," the ZIFA report stated.

"Players were afraid of her and (ZIFA) board members also felt intimidated by her.

"The sheer number of players involved (in match-fixing) is forbidding."

In ZIFA's report, former team manager Ernest Sibanda said Wilson Raj Perumal was central to the fixing and met players in Rushwaya's hotel room in Malaysia, where they were paid up to $US6000 each to throw games.

"Raj was paying the players," Sibanda told investigators. "They were paid, approximately, between $US3000 and $US4000 each."

Perumal is in jail in Finland on corruption charges there.

Zimbabwe coach Norman Mapeza is among 10 off-field staff members who are implicated and face suspension when the ZIFA board next meets.

ZIFA boss Jonathan Mashingaidze said the national team is being rebuilt ahead of the match against Burundi on February 29.

The decision to suspend the players was made following Zimbabwe's failure to qualify for the African Cup of Nations, which is being staged in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

"We can't start a competitive campaign with players who have been exposed to match-fixing. It will be folly," Mashingaidze said.

"We have to start rebuilding the team instead of living in paradise with tainted players."

Samir Zaher, the EFA president, was also reportedly banned from leaving Egypt pending an investigation into the country's worst incident of football-related violence.

Zaher and his board said they had 'collectively resigned'.

They were fired by Egypt Prime Minister Kamal el-Ganzouri on Thursday after the deadly stadium clashes in a move that could have been seen as government interference, which is not allowed by FIFA.

Saturday's decision to resign will likely be accepted by FIFA.

Security forces fired tear gas as thousands of protesters marched towards the interior ministry in Cairo.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian government was reported to have sacked senior officials in Port Said and the Egyptian football association.

FIFA has demanded a full report into the violence at the match on Wednesday night that left more than 70 people dead.

Al Masry fans invaded the pitch after a surprise 3-1 win over Cairo club Al-Ahly in Port Said and protests began after claims that security forces and police did not do enough to intervene, and that the violence was tied up with the political power struggle in the country.

Al-Ahly's Portuguese coach Manuel Jose has returned to Portugal to ponder his future after being attacked, while his assistant coach Pedro Barny backed up the claims that security staff did too little.

FIFA outlined in a statement: "FIFA has asked the Egyptian authorities for a full report on the incidents in order to evaluate what happened."

In a letter to Egyptian FA president Samir Zaher, FIFA president Blatter offered support and was quoted: "Today is a black day for football and we must take steps to ensure that such a catastrophe never happens again.

"Football is a force for good and we must not allow it to be abused by those who mean evil.

"I await further news from you concerning the circumstances of this tragedy."

Home fans reportedly armed with sticks and knives stormed the field after the final whistle.

Reports suggest some Al-Ahly fans suffocated, trapped in a narrow corridor as they fled the violence.

A last-four place was the bottom line set by French coach Herve Renard for the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) when given control of the national squad for a second time last October.

Zambia was upset by Tunisia in the 1996 semi-finals in South Africa and suffered five first-round exits subsequently before Renard managed to get them to the quarter-finals a couple of years ago.

It began the latest edition of the biennial African football showpiece with a bang as Emmanuel Mayuka and Rainford Kalaba scored within the first 20 minutes en route to a shock 2-1 victory over much-fancied Senegal.

Next came Libya in a Bata mudbath sparked by torrential pre-match rain and, while the swift-footed Zambians often became bogged down by the conditions, they displayed resilience to come from behind twice and take a point.

Needing a win over co-host Equatorial Guinea in its final Group A fixture to dodge a last-eight match-up with title co-favourite Cote d'Ivoire, it succeeded thanks to a goal from captain Christopher Katongo.

"You just have to fight for the flag you represent and for the national colours you wear," said Renard ahead of the weekend's first quarter-final at the 35,000-seat Estadio de Bata.

Zambia desperately wants to win the Cup of Nations for the first time next weekend in Gabon, as a plane carrying the 1993 national squad crashed into the Atlantic soon after refuelling in Libreville and all 30 on board died.

"Imagine if we could lift the trophy there - it would be a fantastic way to honour the memories of those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving the land they loved," added Renard.

If the presence of the Copper Bullets among the eight survivors of the group phase is no surprise, few outside Sudan gave the Jediane Falcons much chance of making it ahead of Angola and Burkina Faso.

Coach Mohamed “Mazda” Abdallah insisted before the tournament kicked off two weeks ago that his inexperienced, all-local squad devoid of stars was capable of getting out of Group B behind the Ivorians.

After giving the star-studded Ivorians a few frights before failing narrowly, the Falcons hit back twice to hold Angola and a Mohamed Eltaib brace bagged maximum points against Burkina Faso and qualification on goal difference.

Al Masry fans invaded the pitch after a surprise 3-1 win over Cairo club Al-Ahly in Port Said, with reports stating as many as 79 people died in the ensuing violence.

There have been claims security forces and police did not do enough to intervene and the violence was tied up with the political power struggle in the country.

Al-Ahly's Portuguese coach Manuel Jose has returned to Portugal to ponder his future after being attacked, while his assistant coach Pedro Barny backed up the claims that security staff did too little.

FIFA, the game's world governing body, has asked the Egyptian authorities to explain exactly what happened.

A FIFA statement read: "FIFA has asked the Egyptian authorities for a full report on the incidents in order to evaluate what happened."

In a letter to Egyptian FA president Samir Zaher, FIFA president Sepp Blatter offered support and said: "Today is a black day for football and we must take steps to ensure that such a catastrophe never happens again.

"Football is a force for good and we must not allow it to be abused by those who mean evil.

"I await further news from you concerning the circumstances of this tragedy."

Home fans reportedly armed with sticks and knives stormed the field after the final whistle.

Reports suggest some Al-Ahly fans were suffocated, trapped in a narrow corridor as they fled the violence.

Al-Ahly coach Jose told www.el-ahly.com: "I was beaten with fists and kicks to the neck, head and feet. I saw our fans die before us and we are unable to do anything."

Assistant coach Barny added: "What happened was an unspeakable catastrophe.

"From the beginning of the game, the opposing team's fans were allowed to fire rockets and stones at us without any intervention.

"In the end, it turned into a state of madness without any role for the security in the stands.

"We tried to save the lives of some of the fans, but many died before our eyes."

There are also reports some Al-Ahly players have vowed not to play professional football again after witnessing the violence.

Egypt striker Mohamed Zidan expressed his shock and sadness at the tragedy.

Zidan, who plays his club football in Germany with Mainz, was born in Port Said and spent his youth career with Al Masry.

"The news and pictures from my home city Port Said shock me and affect me very much," the 30-year-old, who won the Bundesliga title with Borussia Dortmund last season, told the Mainz official website.

"Al-Masry are my home-town club, whom I played for for a long time, in this stadium as well.

"Since yesterday I have been on the phone a lot with my homeland. My family and my friends who live in Port Said, have not been directly affected by the disaster.

"My thoughts and my condolences are with the victims and their families."

The Egyptian Football Federation last night announced an indefinite suspension of all leagues in the country following the trouble.

Meanwhile, reports in Egypt have stated Al Masry president Kamel Abu Ali has resigned.

A minute's silence will be held before this weekend's quarter-final matches at the Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Confederation of African Football president Issa Hayatou, whose organisation is based in Cairo, told www.cafonline.com: "African football is in a state of mourning."

Mohamed Aboutrika and Mohamed Barakat, who both have at least 70 caps for Egypt, told Al-Ahly TV that they would quit immediately after the mass violence that left at least 74 people dead at a stadium in the Mediterranean city of Port Said.

"I will not play football again," Aboutrika said. Barakat told the channel that there would be "no football after today" for him.

Emad Moteab also said he would refuse to play until there was "retribution for the people that died," leaving the door open for an eventual return to the game.

Aboutrika and Barakat started the game against Al-Masry, while Moteab was a substitute, and all were among the Al-Ahly players forced to flee the pitch after opposition supporters surged onto the field and clashes broke out.

Aboutrika criticised police and security officials for standing by as Al-Masry supporters, armed with knives, sticks and stones, chased Al-Ahly players and fans, who ran toward the exits and up the stands to escape, according to witnesses.

"People here are dying and no one is doing a thing. It's like a war," Aboutrika told the team's TV station. "Is life this cheap?"

Al-Ahly's Portuguese coach Manuel Jose has also reportedly asked the Cairo club - Egypt's most successful ever - to cancel his contract and allow him to return to Portugal, while Al-Masry club president Kamel Abu Ali and coach Hossam Hassan have quit.

The Egyptian Football Association suspended all league games indefinitely before Egyptian Prime Minister Kamal el-Ganzouri dissolved the federation's board on Thursday.

While Al-Ahly's supporters apparently were not the instigators behind Wednesday's violence, Egypt's most successful club has a history of violent episodes connected to its matches.

Al-Ahly was voted Africa's club of the century in 2000 and has won a record 36 Egyptian league titles and the African Champions League six times - also a record.

But its renowned ultras - or hardline supporters - have often been involved in fighting with police or fans of other teams, and anti establishment violence has often been associated with its games.

Last year, Al-Ahly was forced by Africa's football confederation to play games in the continental club competition behind closed doors after trouble with its fans.

In September, more than 70 fans and riot police were hurt in clashes that spilled out from a stadium into a Cairo neighbourhood following an Al-Ahly game.

It came amid long-standing and bitter animosity between the football supporters and Egyptian security forces after the uprising that toppled Egypt's former president, Hosni Mubarak, was fuelled by anger over police abuse and brutality.

On Wednesday in Port Said, security forces were accused of doing nothing to stop the violence against Al-Ahly players, fans and officials.

The Ultras of Al-Ahly group accused the military council and former members of Mubarak's regime of retaliating against them for their role in the uprising last year and in anti-military protests since.

"They want to punish us and execute us for our participation in the revolution against suppression," the Ultras said in a statement.

Here are some of the tragedies to strike the continent's football grounds.

Zimbabwe, July 9, 2000 - Tear gas was fired by police and 13 supporters died amid unrest at the Harare National Stadium during an international match between Zimbabwe and South Africa.

South Africa, April 11, 2001 - Mass overcrowding at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg at a derby match between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates led to 43 people being crushed to death. Some reports suggested as many as 120,000 people were admitted into a stadium which, at the time, had an official capacity of 60,000. The stadium was later renovated for use at the 2010 World Cup.

Ghana, May 9, 2001 - Police fired tear gas into the crowd after unrest at a match between Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko at the Accra Sports Stadium resulting in mass panic and a stampede. The incident resulted in the deaths of 127 people, making it the worst disaster of its kind in Africa.

Democratic Republic of Congo, April 30, 2001 - Fourteen people were killed during a stampede at a match between Lupopo and Mazembe.

Zambia, June 3, 2007 - Twelve fans were killed in crushes at the end of Zambia's win over DR Congo in Lusaka. It came 11 years after a similar incident in the city in which nine died.

Ivory Coast, March 29, 2009 - A wall collapsed at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny before the start of a World Cup qualifier between Ivory Coast and and Malawi. The incident left a reported 22 people dead and more than 100 injured - but the match was allowed to go ahead with the Ivorians winning 5-0. Officials blamed a stampede of ticketless fans at the 45,000-capacity stadium.

Rival fans invaded the pitch and fought after Al-Masry recorded a surprise 3-1 win over Al-Ahly.

Reports say at least 73 people have died in the unrest while up to a thousand others are injured after the violence quickly spread.

The Egyptian federation issued two statements, announcing a period of mourning and a suspension of football in the country.

"The Egyptian federation has decided to stop the football leagues in all four divisions for an indefinite period after the violence that occurred in the game between Al Masry and Al-Ahly, which represented a tragic shock to the centre of sport in general and the football family in particular," read one statement.

The other added: "The federation has announced that Egyptian football will be in mourning for three days for the souls of those who have fallen victim to the violence that occurred in the wake of the Al Masry-Al-Ahly match."

Rival fans flooded onto the pitch, hurling stones and sticks at each other and sparking a stampede.

One thousand other people were injured, the Health Ministry said.

A medical official said some of the dead were security officers.

Egypt's state prosecutor has ordered an immediate investigation into the causes of the deaths.

Witnesses say most appeared to have occurred in a stampede after fans of the home team, Al-Masry, stormed on to the field after a rare 3-1 win against Al-Ahly, Egypt's top team.

They then chased players and fans from Al-Ahly.

The clashes happened in the Mediterranean port city of Port Said.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter issued a statement to express his sympathy for the families of the victims.

"I am very shocked and saddened to learn this evening that a large number of football supporters have died or been injured following a match in Port Said, Egypt," the statement read.

"My thoughts are with the families of those who have lost their lives this evening.

"This is a black day for football. Such a catastrophic situation is unimaginable and should not happen."

Emmanuel Eboue and Wilfried Bony scored for the side known as The Elephants, which topped the final table with three wins while Angola lost out to Sudan on goal difference in the battle for second place.

Sudan consigned Burkina Faso to a 2-1 defeat in Malabo to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Co-title favourite Cote d'Ivoire collected a maximum nine points without ever going into overdrive, Sudan and Angola secured four each and Burkina Faso came last after three consecutive losses.

The Ivorians remain in the island city to tackle co-host Equatorial Guinea while Sudan faces Zambia in Bata in what will be the first quarter-final.

Coach Francois Zahoui had hinted that he would rest some of his first choices - but leaving nine on the bench came as a surprise with the only regulars in the starting line-up being centre-backs Kolo Toure and Souleymane Bamba.

Kolo Toure, older brother of 2011 African Footballer of the Year Yaya Toure, captained the team in the absence of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou was grateful for the rest after limping off against Burkina Faso last start.

Angola made two changes from the team held by Sudan with goalkeeper Wilson replacing suspended Carlos, whose two yellow cards came for time wasting, and Dede coming in for out-of-form striker Flavio.

The first half did little to excite another small crowd in the 15,000-seat Nuevo Estadio de Malabo apart from a goal on 33 minutes by former Arsenal defender Eboue.

After carelessly conceding possession in midfield, Angola was caught napping as a surging run from Bony took him into the penalty area and when Miguel failed to clear, Eboue tapped the ball in at the far post.

It was the first time in three outings that the Black Antelopes had fallen behind and with Sudan taking the lead in the same minute against Burkina Faso, the pressure was on the team from the south west of the continent.

The Angolans fell further behind on 64 minutes when a long pass into opposition territory by substitute Abdul Kader Keita led to a mix-up between centre-back Massunguna and goalkeeper Wilson, and a gift goal for Bony.

Massunguna panicked under pressure and headed the ball back over his advancing goalkeeper, leaving Bony to run in unopposed and tap the ball over the line.

Angola introduced Germany-born Nando Rafael as time ticked away and finally came alive with a header from former Manchester United striker Manucho forcing Daniel Yeboah into a good reflex save.

Morocco, with an injury time penalty, believed it had done enough to keep its Cup hopes alive before Bruno Mbanangoyes's curling free-kick in the final second of the eighth minute of stoppage time of a remarkable encounter.

Gabon had been on the brink of winning in normal time after second-half goals from Daniel Cousin and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had put it in command after Houssine Kharja's opener.

But, as the stadium announcer urged the 40,000 partisan supporters to "remain calm, remain calm" Kharja appeared to have spoiled Gabon's night when stepping up to coolly convert the 91st minute spot-kick awarded for Charly Moussono's handball.

Then along came Mbanangoye to seal all three points which not only put Gabon into the last eight but Tunisia too, who earlier defeated Niger 2-1.

Morocco and Niger are heading home.

Gabon harried its north African visitor whose Michael Basser had Gabon's defence on the rack early on only to blast his shot off target.

On 24 minutes Morocco injected some much needed life into its campaign when Younes Belhanda found Kharja in the middle of the area, the Fiorentina midfielder losing his marker and shooting low and left-footed past Gabon keeper Didier Ovono Ebang.

At the re-start Gabon introduced Cousin for Stephane Nguema and Morocco replaced Youssef El Arabi with Noureddine Amrabat.

Cousin's introduction almost paid immediate dividends when the former Hull City striker raced onto a cute backpass from Aubameyang over in the right-hand corner, his venomous shot smacking off keeper Nadir Lamyaghri's outstretched hands.

On the hour mark Remy Ebanega was stretchered off with blood pouring from his mouth, the defender returning to the field of battle with a bandaged head.

Queen Parks Rangers striker Adel Taarabt then entered the fray as Morocco tried to kill the game off.

But Gabon got the equaliser it deserved in the 77th minute when Aubameyang volleyed in right-footed in a move begun by a long throw in from the left touchline.

Seconds later Cousin sent the crowd into ecstasy when bagging what he and the rest of his team-mates thought was the winner, skilfully turning to lose his marker, the ball going in off the right post.

But the game had only just begun, as Kharja converted from the spot and then Dinamo Minsk midfielder Mbanangoye became a national hero.

The Chelsea forward had to come off in the 65th minute of the 2-0 Group B tie in Malabo, clutching his thigh.

And Ivory Coast manager Francois Zaoui fears the worst.

"This is upsetting," said the manager.

"He's been a pivotal player for us since we began our warm-up matches. He scores goal and sets up goals and that's why it's going to penalise us.

"We're worried that he's suffered a strain or a tear because he pulled up so suddenly. We'll find out more after a scan."

Kalou set the Ivorians on their way to victory on Wednesday, scoring the opener on 16 minutes, having set up his Chelsea team-mate and captain Didier Drogba for the only goal of the game against Sudan last Sunday.

Mali edged past Guinea 1-0 in the first west African derby of the group on Tuesday, while the third such clash will be next week when Ghana battles another sub-regional rival Guinea.

Pre-tournament favourite Black Stars of Ghana will again be expected to beat Mali after it defeated Les Aigles home and away in the qualifying tournament for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which also served as eliminator for the 2010 Nations Cup.

"It's difficult when you are one of the pre-tournament favourites," admitted Ghana coach Goran Stevanovic.

"We have already learnt that it is not easy to beat any team here. We therefore have to be ready for Mali."

However, Ghana, who are on $90,000-a-man bonus if it wins this competition, was far from convincing in its opening game against debutant Botswana and only had a lucky first-half goal by skipper John Mensah to thank for a slim win.

Mensah will miss this match on account of his sending off against Botswana, but will be available for selection in the final group game against Guinea if he recovers from a muscle problem he suffered in his team's first game.

"It's difficult to replace a player like Mensah but I have told the team that I would need all of them for this tournament and so I have 20 players who could replace him against Mali," said Stevanovic.

Young centre back Jonathan Mensah, who was introduced after Mensah's dismissal for a professional foul, will most likely play alongside another youngster John Boye in the heart of the Black Stars back four Saturday.

Rennes defender Boye was so outstanding in his Nations Cup debut that he was picked as the best player for the Botswana match. He did not show any nerves and he even saved a goal-bound effort on the goal line.

There have been some concerns as regards the fitness of star striker Asamoah Gyan, who limped out of training Thursday with a suspected ankle complaint.

It will be a heavy body blow for Ghana should Gyan fail to recover for this match as the Black Stars are thin on strikers for this tournament.

Mali also had to defend with their lives a first-half goal by Bakaye Traore to turn away Guinea in the other Group D match on Tuesday.

Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita has assumed bigger responsibilities in the absence of top Mali stars like Mahamadou Diarra, Momo Sissoko and Frederic Kanoute, who has quit international football.

Keita said Mali is driven to win again against the highly-rated Ghanaians.

"Ghana remain the favourites in our group, but the Black Stars are not unbeatable," maintained Keita, who was very emotional after a hard-fought win over next door neighbours Guinea.

"The objective is to play to our potentials and get a positive result on Saturday."

He added: "We have not achieved anything yet and in football, things can happen so fast and so our second game against Ghana will be a lot more decisive."

Gabon galloped to a 2-0 win over outclassed debutant Niger to get its campaign off to the ideal start.

The 2012 co-host took a potentially major step towards a quarter-final berth with first half headers from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Stephane Nguema.

North African neighbours Tunisia and Morocco's last Nations Cup meeting came in the 2004 final won by Tunisia, which also denied Morocco qualification to the 2006 World Cup.

And the Carthage Eagles claimed the bragging rights again with goals in either half from Khaled Korbi and Youssef Msakni, with Houssine Kharja getting a dubious late consolation for Morocco.

As promised, Morocco coach Eric Gerets kept faith with veteran keeper Nadir Lamyaghri who was returning after a lengthy lay off.

The Belgian chose Arsenal's Marouane Chamakh to spearhead the attack alongside Oussama Assaidi, with Queens Park Rangers' Adel Taraabt on the bench.

The Tunisian side was missing Auxerre-attached Issam Jemaa, top scorer in qualifying but sidelined with an ankle problem.

The match got underway with the L'Amitie stadium only half full, the other half having gone off to celebrate co-host Gabon's stirring 2-0 win over Niger in the first instalment of the Group C double bill.

Gerets' confidence in Lamyaghri was repaid as early as the eighth minute when the keeper's athletic dive denied Tunisia skipper Karim Haggui.

Down at the other end Lamyaghri's opposite number Aymen Mathlouthi was up to the task of stopping Moroccan midfielder Mbark Boussoufa's shot from the right of the box.

The two favourites to qualify - at least until Gabon's victory - were creating plenty of early chances, one of the better ones coming before the half hour was up when Zouhaier Dhaouadi struck from outside the box with only the post preventing Tunisia from taking control.

They did just that on 34 minutes when Korbi's dipping freekick from 25m sailed over the Moroccan defence to hit the inside of Lamyaghri's far upright and cross the line.

Morocco would have levelled before the break only for Younes Belhanda to shoot narrowly off target after some nimble footwork from the Montpellier man in front of Mathlouthi's goalmouth.

Gerets made one switch at the restart, bringing on Taarabt for Assaidi in a bid to salvage something from this opening Cup run out and the QPR forward was quickly making his presence felt.

Gerets later introduced Youssef Hadji for Boussoufa and the Rennes striker soon had his head in his hands when after beautifully controlling a long lob in the area he shot wide.

Morocco was getting plenty of the ball but the Tunisian backline marshalled by Haggui was holding firm.

On 75 minutes second half substitute Msakni bagged his first for his country when fending off Ahmed Kantari and then Badr El Kaddouri to slice the ball across the box and into Lamyaghri's far corner.

Morocco pulled one back with four minutes to go when Ahmed Kantari, who appeared well offside, crossed from the right for Kharja to convert - the Fiorentina midfielder had Tunisian hearts in their mouths again in injury time when shaving the crossbar.

In 2006 you had the Palancas Negras, who overcame the turmoil of the Angolan civil war to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, while Iraq made it to the semi-finals of the 2004 Olympic Games and won the 2007 Asian Cup at the height of war in that country.

This time around, it is the Libyan national team that has been given fairytale status as the team has made it to the finals of the showpiece of African football for the third time in its history.

At the January 21 - February 12 finals Libya will face co-host Equatorial Guinea, as well as Zambia and Ivory Coast in group A.

What makes Libya's qualification for the tournament even more remarkable is that not only did it have to overcome the civil war at home, it had to play two of its three home games on neutral ground.

It beat Comoros in Mali's capital Bamako and then secured a victory against Mozambique in Cairo to clinch one of the places reserved for the two best runners-up.

Coach Marcos Paqueta, who won the under-17 and under 20-World Cups with his native Brazil in 2003, said at a press conference on Friday that participation in the tournament was important for the country.

"Last year was a difficult one for all Libyans and we had to honour some of our matches away from home. Participation at the tournament means a lot to the players and all Libyans.

"It presents a perfect opportunity to bring back joy and heal the wounds of Libyans after all the troubles."

Paqueta, who coached Saudi Arabia at the 2006 World Cup, has a squad consisting mainly of locally-based players, with Serbian-based midfielder Mohammed Monir and Braga's Djamal Mahamat the only players who play outside of Africa and the Middle East.

The coach knows the importance of the opening match against Equatorial Guinea for his side's chances of staying in the competition.

"The first game in every competition is key to qualification to the next round," he said.

"If you win, you are on course and it takes some pressure off you for the remaining games.

"It will be a difficult game playing against the host team. They are playing at home and everybody will be rooting for them."

He admits to knowing little about his opponent apart from it having a new coach and "some players of Brazilian background in their squad."

One former Libyan national team captain who will not be in Equatorial Guinea/Gabon to cheer the team on is Al-Saadi Gaddafi. The son of the murdered dictator Muammar has fled into exile in Niger.

The 38-year-old, who was on the books of three Serie A clubs, but played just two league matches in total, is wanted on an Interpol arrest warrant and would be foolish to leave Niger.

Spokesman Souleymane Diallo said Mali had informed the tournament's medical commission of the changes to its squad. Teams are allowed to replace injured players up to 24 hours before the country's opening game.

Mali, the main challenger to Ghana in Group D, opens its Cup of Nations campaign against Guinea in Franceville on Tuesday before facing the four-time champion Black Stars on January 28 - also at Stade de Franceville.

Traore had been struggling with a knee injury which he failed to recover from, while Fofana picked up a thigh knock in a warm-up game.

Mali had already lost Auxerre defender Amadou Sidibe to injury.

Straight afterwards, Senegal faces Zambia in the same 37,500-capacity Bata Stadium in the Group A double header.

Equatorial Guinea's squad has been promised a share of a $1 million win bonus for the opening match, but has injury doubts over mainstay striker Rodolfo Bodipo.

Bodipo, who plays with Spanish second-tier club Deportivo La Coruna, said he picked up a knock on his left ankle in a warm-up match against South Africa but hoped to be available for his team's first ever match at the African Cup.

The No.151-ranked team had a fractured build-up after experienced French coach Henri Michel resigned just weeks ago.

That left Brazilian replacement Gilson Paulo with little time to get to know his squad.

"The Equatorial Guinea people are very passionate for football and we will be hoping to give them a good result in the first game so they can relax and enjoy the tournament," Paulo said.

"We will be trying to put on a good, strong show, but it has to be realised that the preparation time was short."

Libya is determined to cap a year in which Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown with success at the continent's showpiece tournament.

"The key to qualifying is always the first game," said Libya's Brazilian coach Marcos Paqueta.

"Libya and Equatorial Guinea are in third and fourth position if we rank the group. Senegal and Zambia are favourites, so the first game is the key game for us."

Paqueta said Libya's players were aware of the extra motivation to do well.

"This is one of the best moments we have been through with the Libyan national team," he said.

"It was a very difficult year not just for the national team but for all the Libyan people. All the players are conscious this is a good opportunity to bring some joy to the Libyan people who deserve that after all they have been through."

Zambia also had a crisis with its preparations when the players were forced to move from the hotel they were staying in just two days before its first game after coach Herve Renard criticised the facilities.

"We can't make any excuses about that, it was a problem but we resolved the problem," the French coach said. "We just have to be focused on the competition."

Renard said Zambia could benefit from its underdog status.

"A lot of players and coaches would like to be in our place," he said. "There's no stress for us.

"When we go to the pitch tomorrow, we will look at our opponent, we know them because they are playing in the Champions League, but we will say 'we want to beat you.'

"You can create a big surprise. You just have to fight for your flag, for your colours," he added. "This is very important. You are feeling something different when you are in Africa - it's a fantastic tournament."

The hopes of Senegal, one of the tournament favourites, rest on a star-studded attack led by Newcastle United striker Demba Ba and Lille forward Moussa Sow.

Senegal's arrival at the tournament seems to have been somewhat smoother, but coach Amara Traore tried to play down his team's billing as possible champion.

"We are not the favourites, but Senegal has ambition," he said. "We have a lot of motivation to win the first match so we can relax a bit for the second game."

The team attracted a couple of hundred supporters to its practice session on Friday in Biqui, a barely finished training venue that has been hacked out of the jungle on the outskirts of Bata.

The fans chanted and shouted encouragement as the players took part in a gentle practice match. Outside, builders were laying concrete and applying coats of paint to the complex - a far cry from the experiences of several Senegal players who are based in Europe and have played in some of the world's top stadiums.

The trailing pack of underdogs, however, want their day at the continental championship.

Top-ranked African team Cote d'Ivoire and World Cup quarter-finalist Ghana were already strong contenders for the Africa Cup, which kicks off on Sunday (AEDT), because of their star-studded squads.

But the absence of former champion Egypt, Cameroon, Nigeria and South Africa has made the Ivorians and Ghanaians the standout countries at this year's tournament, which will be co-hosted by West African neighbours Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Senegal and Mali and North African rivals Morocco and Tunisia are viewed as the biggest threats to the top two, but following a surprising and unpredictable 12 months in African football, the smaller teams could also have an important say.

Libya battled through civil war at home to make its third Africa Cup, while Niger and Botswana emerged ahead of some of Africa's powerhouses to earn tournament debuts.

Angola and Burkina Faso are plotting to upset the group campaign of Ivory Coast, while Ghana has to deal with dangerous Mali and buoyant Botswana in the first round.

Co-host Gabon hopes a surge of home support can carry it to at least the quarter-finals.

Unheralded host nations have a strong record in Africa after Burkina Faso made the semi-finals in 1998, Libya the final in 1982 and Sudan won in 1970.

Cote d'Ivoire's Elephants and Ghana's Black Stars are still expected to meet in the final at the Stade d'Angondje in Libreville on 12 February - but both are under pressure as they will have few excuses for another failure.

"Ghana's reputation means we are one of the tournament heavyweights and we accept the task because we know that playing in the final is the least everyone expects from us," Ghana coach Goran Stevanovic said.

"I always want to be among the favourites and I know we have put additional pressure on the team by telling them time and again that Ghana ought to win the Cup of Nations for the first time in 30 years."

A four-time champion and the most successful team at this year's tournament without Egypt and Cameroon, Ghana hasn't been crowned African champion since 1982. Ivory Coast has missed out for the last 20 years.

The key for both, as is traditional for top African teams, is how quickly and well they can assimilate foreign-based players from far-flung clubs into the national set-up.

Cote d'Ivoire appears to be well-set after a perfect run of six wins from six games in qualifying, but the Elephants have disappointed before when highly rated.

A quarter-final exit at the last African Cup and a first-round exit at the World Cup, both in 2010, backed that up.

Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, now 33, has long led the charge but midfielder Yaya Toure emerged as the focal point for this campaign.

The Manchester City midfielder is one of the world's best players and if he can create a platform for Drogba, Chelsea teammate Salomon Kalou and Arsenal forward Gervinho to attack from, the Ivorians will be hard to stop.

Stevanovic said his Ghana squad was chosen on "individual quality, character, strong personality and a winning mentality" and even without Michael Essien and AC Milan midfielder Kevin Prince Boateng, the group has an effective blend of talent and experience to end a run of near-misses.

Andre Ayew, the fast-emerging 22-year-old Marseille winger, and equally promising brother Jordan aim to repeat the feat of their father, Abedi Pele, who won the Africa Cup with Ghana 30 years ago.

Defender John Mensah is the defensive rock. A hamstring injury to striker Asamoah Gyan has been the biggest worry for last tournament's runner-up.

Senegal's strongest point is undoubtedly up front, where Demba Ba, Moussa Sow, Papiss Demba Cisse, Mamadou Niang and Dame Ndoye give another former World Cup quarterfinalist five proven scorers to pick from.

Tunisia and Morocco are boosted by strong organisation and, in Morocco's case, the clever Belgian coach and tactician Eric Gerets. Gerets has won league titles in Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

Mali has decorated Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita as its undoubted leader and is a player capable of inspiring a youthful but promising team to the final stages.

"I'm happy to be playing with these young guys, this new generation," said Keita, a Spanish league, Champions League and Club World Cup winner. "I want to help them and I know they want to help me too, and most of all we want to help our country to get to the quarterfinals. After that anything is possible."

However, it's Libya, Niger and Botswana who know more than any other teams that anything is possible in this competition after their shock qualifications.

The Libyans weren't able to play matches at home as chaos reigned, Niger ousted seven-time African champion Egypt and South Africa and Botswana emerged with a team of little-known players to be the first through qualifying.

All three proved that the greatest of underdogs can still have their day at top tournaments.

"For us, it's about the player's spirit," Libya assistant coach Bashir Milad said, adding the new country had targeted a place in the quarterfinals. "If the team plays well we can go even further."

The whole tournament will be shown live in Australia by Eurosport.

An air force plane carrying the national squad to Senegal in April 1993 for a FIFA World Cup qualifier crashed soon after take-off following a refuelling stop in Gabon capital Libreville and plunged into the Atlantic Ocean.

Only former African Footballer of the Year Kalusha Bwalya avoided one of the great African football tragedies because he was based in the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven and travelled directly to Dakar from Europe.

Many Zambian football followers consider the team of 1993 the greatest to represent the mineral-rich southern Africa country and those who died are buried outside the national stadium in Lusaka.

Zambia built a new Bwalya-inspired team overnight who came agonisingly close to glory - missing out on a 1994 World Cup place by one point and finishing runner-up to Nigeria in the Africa Cup of the Nations the same year.

Mweene plays for South African Premiership outfit Free State Stars and said he spoke for the 2012 Cup of Nations squad when telling AFP they are going to Gabon and Equatorial Guinea to "put the souls of our fallen heroes to rest.

"Most of us were in primary school when the crash happened, but Kalusha remembers it vividly and has encouraged us to keep those who perished in our minds whenever we fight for our country."

It is a theme taken up by another South Africa-based squad member, midfielder Isaac Chansa from famous Soweto club Orlando Pirates, and France-born national coach Herve Renard.

"The best way to honour the Zambian stars who died off the coast of Gabon is by doing well at this Cup of Nations," stressed the midfielder who packs an explosive shooting punch.

Renard has set the bar high for his team: "It is my dream to win the Cup of Nations in Libreville because a great part of Zambian football history was written there.

"Imagine if we could lift the trophy - it would be a fantastic way to honour the memories of those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving the land they loved.

"I am going to central Africa with footballers who are committed to fighting for their country and not just themselves. We will be proud ambassadors of Zambia. We will respect all our opponents, but we will fear none of them."

The Copper Bullets are in Bata-based Group A with Senegal, a country they have beaten twice and lost to once in five previous Cup of Nations clashes, Libya and Equatorial Guinea and the top two advance to the knockout phase.

Renard quit Zambia having taken them to the quarter-finals of the last African tournament and returned when football association president Bwalya dumped Italian Dario Bonetti two days after 2012 qualification was secured.

"Didier Six is going to be named coach of the national team in the next few days," said Ameyi.

"The contract will be signed quickly because the qualifiers for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations get underway at the end of February and we need to have a coach."

Six, 57, took charge of Togo on an interim basis in November, steering the team past Guinea Bissau in the preliminary round of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup.

Club officials confirmed Saturday a deal that will bring Rivaldo, who turns 40 in April, to a Luanda team who finished second behind Recreativo Libolo in the national championship last year.

The 1999 World Footballer of the Year and European Footballer of the Year will inject much needed interest into a league that suffers, like most others in Africa, from an exodus of its best footballers to Europe.

Rivaldo left Brazilian outfit Sao Paulo a month ago after another chapter in a globe-trotting career that had taken him to Spain, Italy, Greece and Uzbekistan before returning home last year.

Attacking midfielder Rivaldo, who said the fact that Brazil and Angola are Portuguese-speaking countries played a big part in his decision, was part of the Brazil 2002 World Cup-winning team and played for Barcelona and AC Milan.

Amoros will be assisted by fellow Frenchman Nicolas Philibert, a Benin sports ministry official told AFP.

He said the former France captain and Comoros coach is expected in Cotonou on Friday to sign a two-year deal.

The 49-year-old Amoros, who won the UEFA Champions League with Marseille in 1993, played 82 times for France and was voted the best young player of the 1982 FIFA World Cup.

It is 30 years since the Black Stars (Ghana) enjoyed the last of four successes in the biennial championship and 20 years since the Elephants (Cote d'Ivoire) lifted the Africa Cup of Nations for the only time.

They enter the January 21-February 12 continental showpiece in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon as co-favourites with Senegal considered the best of the rest in a 16-team field.

Opinions of coaches and footballers vary as to which other sides could go far in a 23-day tournament notable for the absence of regular competitors like title holders Egypt, Algeria, Cameroon, Nigeria and South Africa.

Ghana coach Goran Stevanovic backs Mali and 2011 African Footballer of the Year and Cote d'Ivoire midfielder Yaya Toure believes Morocco and Burkina Faso pose threats.

If Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is to be believed, only the star-saturated Ivorians need bother turning up as he rates them "an incredible team and hot favourites".

"They have a midfield of English Premier League stars Cheik Tiote, Yaya Toure and Gervinho and Cameroon are not there, Egypt are not there and Nigeria are not there."

Cote d'Ivoire was the hot favourite in 2008 and cruised until Egypt hit it for four in the semi-finals and was also the 2010 favourite only to concede a late equaliser against Algeria in the quarter-finals and lose after extra time.

"We have got a big problem in Ivory Coast - we do not respect opponents," lamented coach Francois Zahoui.

"We go to each Cup of Nations as super favourites and come back disappointed."

Ghana came third as host of a 2008 championship won by Egypt and held the Pharaohs until the dying minutes of the 2010 final in Angola before conceding the lone goal.

While star Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan battles to recover from a hamstring injury, team-mate and 2011 African Footballer of the Year bronze medalist Andre Ayew says the time has come for the Black Stars to conquer Africa again.

"I believe we have the confidence to finally lift the trophy. It is not going to be easy, though, because we are going into a tournament and anything can happen," said the Marseille-based son of Black Stars legend Abedi 'Pele' Ayew.

Senegal (Group A), Ivory Coast (Group B) and Ghana (Group D) should top first phase mini-leagues, but choosing between co-host Gabon, former champion Morocco and Tunisia in Group C is difficult.

Equatorial Guinea, which put Brazilian coach Gilson Paulao in charge 18 days before the tournament started and told him to win it with a team ranked 42nd in Africa, Botswana and Niger are newcomers and seem destined for early exits.

Many neutral football supporters will cheer for Libya, whose team risked their lives last year travelling to and from a country wracked by civil war to fulfil qualifying fixtures.

The Fecafoot Executive Committee met to reconsider the ban handed to Eto'o for leading a strike of national team players over late payment of appearance fees.

Although Eto'o did not challenge the ban, which related to the players' refusal to play a friendly against Algeria in November, the Executive Committee was asked to reconsider by Cameroon president Paul Biya.

And a statement on Fecafoot's website confirmed that the sanction has been cut.

The statement suggested the committee had taken into account Eto'o's enormous popularity in the country given his long career in the national team, saying that although he was required to be a model of 'patriotism, loyalty and commitment' as captain, they also noted he 'is a world famous athlete who has rendered outstanding services to the national team of Cameroon'.

Vice-captain Enoh Eyong had his ban cut to one match while Tottenham Hotspur defender Benoit Assou-Ekotto had a US$2,000 (£1,956) fine rescinded.

South African media reports on Wednesday read that Brazilian Gilson Paulo had taken over from Frenchman Henri Michel, who stepped down last month for the second time.

Paulo is a former director of sports at the Vasco Da Gama football academy in Brazil and will coach Equatorial Guinea in its friendly against South Africa on 5 January for the first time.

The co-host has been drawn into Group A together with Libya, Senegal and Zambia at the 21 January - 12 February tournament.

Namibia claims Cameroon-born Herve Zengue was ineligible to play against it in qualifiers for the 2012 African showcase and wants to replace Burkina Faso at the January 21-February 12 tournament in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Having had two appeals rejected by African football governing body CAF, the Namibians have turned to the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to reverse what official Barry Rukoro calls a "travesty of justice".

CAS will meet in early January and hear the case against Chechnya-based Zengue, who is married to a Burkinabe, but does not fulfil any of the FIFA criteria to play for the country of his wife.

Although Burkina Faso coach Paulo Duarte has been dismissive of the Namibian appeals, he did not include the left-back in his provisional squad for Group B fixtures against Angola, Cote d'Ivoire and Sudan.

Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana are favourites for the Africa Cup of Nations in the absence of defending champion Egypt and other regular participants such as Algeria, Cameroon, Nigeria and South Africa.

New CAF Footballer of the Year Yaya Toure heads a galaxy of stars seeking a second title for Cote d'Ivoire while third-place Andre Ayew, a son of legend Abedi 'Pele' Ayew, is a potential match-winner for four-time champion Ghana.

Senegal is blessed with an abundance of consistent scorers like Moussa Sow and Demba Ba as it chases a first crown and Gabon, Guinea, Morocco and Tunisia could go far.

Botswana and Niger appear for the first time along with Equatorial Guinea, which owes its place to being co-host of a tournament which switches to uneven-number years from 2013 to avoid clashing with the World Cup.

With two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments in as many years, the 2013 qualifiers kick off in early January before the 2012 tournament starts and the 15 teams to join host South Africa will be decided over three knockout rounds.

Nigeria will not relish a February visit to Rwanda, who have been revitalised by new Serb coach Milutin Sredojevic, and record seven-time African champion Egypt faces a potentially tough task at improving Central African Republic.

Unless the Pharaohs play sooner, the February 29 Bangui fixture could offer 178-cap midfielder Ahmed Hassan the chance to overtake retired Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Mohammed Al Deayea and become the most capped footballer.

Fixture congestion means these second round fixtures are scheduled for the last day of February while the return games will be staged only in mid-June after two weekends of 2014 World Cup qualifying action.

Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia are seeded to win the 10 four-team World Cup groups and reach the final qualifying phase.

But the Ivorians must get past Morocco, Ghana has to contend with Zambia and Sudan and Guinea threaten Egypt, whose American coach Bob Bradley will be acutely aware that African successes have not been matched in the World Cup.

Cameroon, another team under new management with Frenchman Denis Lavagne replacing Spaniard Javier Clemente, must face Democratic Republic of Congo and Libya without suspended star striker and captain Samuel Eto'o.

The record four-time CAF Footballer of the Year did not appeal against a 15-match ban after instigating a cash-related players' strike that forced the cancellation last month of a friendly against Algeria.

Esperance of Tunisia defend the CAF Champions League title with the biggest threats to the 'Blood and Gold' possibly coming from former winners Al-Ahly of Egypt and TP Mazembe of DR Congo.

Surprise CAF Confederation Cup winner Moghreb Fes of Morocco, is among the Champions League hopefuls next year and runner-up Club Africain of Tunisia looks set to mount another strong title challenge in the second-tier competition.

"These people accused of violence against others will on Thursday go before the court in Meknes, which will decide their fate," said the source.

The derby match was stopped by the referee in the 52nd minute, with host CODM leading 1-0, after MAZ player Abdelmoula Berrabeh was struck by a missile thrown by supporters.

MAZ coach Rachid Taoussi also claimed to have been hit by a bottle.

The Royal Moroccan Football Federation has announced that it will open an investigation into the violence.

City will lose influential brothers Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure to the Ivory Coast squad for the January 21-February 12 event while Spurs will be unaffected with Adebayor's Togo banned from taking part.

"They have two players going to the African Nations Cup. Kolo Toure is not playing a lot but he is a great player," Adebayor said. "Yaya Toure has been amazing for them this year.

"We will have to wait and see (how they cope). In football you can have two or three injuries in a week. That has happened to us recently.

"City have a great team, a great spirit and at the moment they are playing good football, but if they got a couple of injuries I think it would be very difficult for them."

The tournament in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon coincides with City facing Spurs, Everton, Fulham and Aston Villa.

The Toure brothers will also miss the game against Wigan on January 16 due to the Ivory Coast's training camp.

Chelsea will lose Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, while Arsenal will be without Gervinho, Alex Song and Emmanuel Frimpong.

"We will have everyone here when the African Nations Cup is on," added the 27-year-old Adebayor.

Toure, the physically imposing 28-year-old younger brother of City defender Kolo, finished ahead of Ghana and Marseille midfielder Andre Ayew and Mali and Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita in a vote among Africa-based national coaches.

The title holder, Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o, was on Wednesday eliminated from the race to be crowned the best footballer on the continent along with Senegal and Lille striker Moussa Sow.

Yaya has been a key figure in the rise of Manchester City from Premier League also-rans to title contenders and FA Cup winners with the Ivorian scoring the goals that beat Manchester United in the semi-finals and Stoke City in the final.

He was also a pivotal figure as Cote d'Ivoire finished the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers as the only country with a perfect record having defeated Rwanda, Burundi and Benin home and away.

Toure began his professional career 10 years ago with Belgian outfit Beveren and also played in the Ukraine, Greece, France and for global giants Barcelona before moving to north-west England.

He is only the second Ivorian, after Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, to win the highest CAF individual award and thanked his family and City team-mates during a short speech at State House in the Ghana capital Accra.

The sanction was handed down on Friday by Fecafoot, the country's football federation, after Eto'o took part in the player boycott of a friendly against Algeria last month in protest at unpaid bonuses.

A statement from Sports minister Adoum Garoua read that the government is 'looking at the possibilities of bringing together the various parties involved' in a bid to 'resolve the problem and restore harmony'.

Fecafoot also banned vice-captain Enoh Eyong for two matches and gave Benoit Assou-Ekotto a fine of $1,980.

The success completes a family double as father Abedi 'Pele' Ayew won the award 20 years ago when it was called the BBC African Sports Star of the Year.

'Pele' presented the trophy to his son - the fifth Ghanaian winner after his father, Samuel Kuffour, Michael Essien and Asamoah Gyan.

BBC world service listeners voted Ayew tops ahead of Ivorians Yaya Toure and Gervinho, Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o and Malian Seydou Keita.

All bar 'Gervinho' are also contenders for the 2011 CAF African Footballer of the Year award to be announced on December 22 in Accra.

Senegal striker Moussa Sow - top scorer in the French Ligue 1 last season - is on the five-man CAF list instead of Gervinho.

The surprisingly harsh punishment was meted out by the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) disciplinary committee and reported on the website of the governing body.

National team striker and captain Eto'o has been voted African Footballer of the Year a record four times and has represented the Cameroonian 'Indomitable Lions' for more than a decade.

But the Russia-based striker has frequently disagreed with officials - especially on money issues - and took the brunt of the blame when a strike prevented the Algeria match going ahead.

Cameroon had beaten Sudan and drawn with host Morocco in a four-nation Marrakech tournament and was due to wrap up a hectic friendlies schedule against Algeria.

Eto'o and his team-mates claimed they were not paid money due to them by FECAFOOT and the fixture had to be canned with Algeria claiming US$1 million compensation for lost revenue.

Eto'o has two weeks to appeal the ban which would rule him out of a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations tie in Guinea Bissau on February 29 and 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Democratic Republic of Congo and Libya.

Toure is set to join fellow Côte d'Ivoire international Didier Drogba, of Chelsea, for the tournament which starts in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea on January 21.

Just a year after conflict over a presidential election brought Côte d'Ivoire to the brink of civil war, violence which accompanied recent elections has led to fears of another similar situation.

Although there is no civil war in the west African country, Toure is quoted in several newspapers as saying: "Our country needs people like me and Didier Drogba at the moment.

"There is a war again and it's important we do what we can for our people. It is dangerous and people are afraid.

"The team, the club and the manager needs me and I do feel a little bit guilty and confused about leaving.

"But I have to go because my country is going through some difficult things with the war. City will cope."

The Manchester City midfielder may be allowed to delay his departure so he can play in two key cup matches.

City play city rivals United in the FA Cup third round on January 8, with Liverpool visiting in the first leg of the League Cup semi-final three days later.

The Côte d'Ivoire is within its rights to summon Toure - and brother Kolo - with FIFA rules stating that participating nations can call on players to report for duty up to 14 days before the start of a major tournament.

However, Côte d'Ivoire counterpart Francois Zahoui played alongside City boss Roberto Mancini in Italy with Ascoli - and the latter hopes to have the Toure brothers in his squad for both cup matches.

Yaya Toure is adamant, however, that City's squad is strong enough to cope with the absence of the pair, should they be required to miss both ties.

He added: "We have fantastic players who can take my place. I will not be away for a long time and I want to come back and help us win the league."

Lawyer for the Namibian Football Association (NFA) Reinhard Stuenkel on Friday confirmed to dpa that his office had faxed the documents to CAS late Thursday and sent them by registered mail.

Namibia lost two Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Burkina Faso, but put in a protest about the eligibility of one of the Burkina Faso players, Cameroon-born Herve Zengue.

Zengue played in both matches against Namibia and should the games be awarded to Namibia as a result, the southern African country would take the place of Burkina Faso at the January 21 - February 12 finals, which will be co-hosted by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

Africa's controlling body CAF dismissed Namibia's protest on the grounds that the protest had not been signed by the captain's of both teams and the CAF appeal board later upheld the decision.

The North Africans followed in the footsteps of Gabon, who sealed a first appearance at the Games 24 hours earlier in Tangiers when Andre Biyogho Poko headed the only goal against Senegal in the last minute of extra time.

Egypt and Senegal has another chance to reach London when they clash for third place and even defeat will not spell the end as the losers face the fourth-place team in the Asian qualifiers for another slot next April.

The tournament hosts took only 30 seconds to edge ahead as Soufiane Bidaoui dribbled past several defenders and his cutback was tapped into the net by Abdelaziz Barrada.

The 22-year-old midfielder from Spanish La Liga club Getafe struck with nine minutes gone, poking a loose ball over the line after a goalkeeping error.

Egypt, who has represented Africa at the Olympics a record 10 times, held its nerve and attacked a fragile Moroccan rearguard only to have two shots cleared off the line and another rebound from the base of a post.

But a much-deserved goal for the visitor finally arrived on 36 minutes when a Marwan Mohsen cross was picked up by Mohamed Salah and he punished sloppy defending to drive the ball across Itra and into the far corner.

The pace slackened during the second half until a Barrada run and a Bidaoui cutback set up Younes Mokhtar for a third Moroccan goal midway through the half.

Egypt refused to surrender and after substitute Ahmed Shokry headed against the woodwork, Ahmed Abdelbaset scored from close-range to trigger a tense climax.

Africa has collected football medals at four of the last five Olympics with Nigeria (1996) and Cameroon (2000) striking gold, Nigeria (2008) silver and Ghana (1992) bronze.

A UEFA Champions League medal winner with Marseille two decades ago, the slightly built midfielder was the outstanding African footballer of the early 1990s and topped the CAF Footballer of the Year poll three times.

Club president Pele says he also coaches second division Nania - a mainly youthful team captained by defender Lawrence Lartey - to repay his country for the opportunities it gave him.

Nania qualified for the second-tier Pan-African competition by shocking top-flight Asante Kotoko 1-0 in the Ghana FA Cup final courtesy of a spectacular Evans Omani extra-time goal.

So while Kotoko and equally famous Hearts of Oak must settle for domestic football fare next year, Nania aim to make an impact beyond the borders of the west African nation.

"Winning the FA Cup was great," admits Pele, whose professional career included spells at Niort, Mulhouse, Marseille, Lille and Lyon in France, Torino in Italy and 1860 Munich in Germany.

"We waited 13 years for our first title and worked hard to reach this level. Our strategy was to play like Barcelona - tight in defence, giving Kotoko no room to play their usual game.

"Kotoko are a great team and it is always hard to beat them. You have to be strong tactically and technically to defeat Asante. Our tactical awareness was high and made the difference."

Pele said he would rely on the cup-winning squad for the African campaign because new signings would use financial resources needed to cover Confederation Cup expenses.

"We have conquered Ghana so let us now try and conquer Africa. This is a fresh challenge for everyone at the club. Our task is to prepare physically, mentally and tactically."

The draw for the three qualifying rounds of a competition won by Moghreb Fes of Morocco last weekend is scheduled for mid-December in Cairo and Nania are bound to attract attention despite many big-name entrants.

Among clubs set to compete are former African champions Entente Setif and JS Kabylie of Algeria, Club Africain of Tunisia, Ismailia of Egypt, ASEC Mimosas of Ivory Coast, Wydad Casablanca of Morocco and Union Douala of Cameroon.

Another powerful entrant is CS Sfaxien of Tunisia, the only club to win the Confederation Cup twice since its 2004 inauguration, and CODM Meknes will be watched closely as unfancied Moroccan sides won the last two editions.

After three two-leg elimination rounds between February and May, the eight survivors face the losers from the final CAF Champions League qualifiers with group places at stake.

Following six rounds of mini-league action there are semi-finals and a final staged on a home-and-away basis with the winners pocketing 660,000 dollars and a place in the CAF Super Cup against the Champions League title holders.

Nigerian club Bayelsa United says striker Aruwa Ameh died nearly a week after being hospitalised in Kaduna, where he had been visiting family. He was pronounced dead on Monday at a local hospital.

Team spokesman George Ameli told The Associated Press that the cause of death was unknown.

He says the club, which is based in the southeastern town of Yenagoa, received reports that Ameh went to the hospital over arm pain 'and never came back'.

Ameli says Ameh was the top scorer in the Nigerian Premier League in 2007.

Federation spokesman Aime Ekpe said another 25 people from the Etoile Filante delegation - 19 of them players - plus the driver were injured in Saturday's crash.

The federation said earlier reports of six players being killed were not correct.

Ekpe said on Sunday that club secretary general Christophe Dagdovi, deputy coach Isidore Kouma, a female reporter attached to the club, a cook and a team doctor were killed alongside Balogou in the accident in Glei, about 130 kilometres north of the capital Lome.

Another 28 people are critically injured

In a statement read on national television, the government said Togo president Faure Gnassingbe had ordered that the injured be taken to a military hospital in the capital Lome.

The accident happened on Saturday near the city of Atakpame, about 160 kilometres north of Lome, as Etoile Filante was on its way to Sokode for a league game against Semassi.

A tyre is believed to have burst, causing the bus to flip over and plunge down a ravine.

Some of the victims died in the fire.

The 24-year-old forward has been rewarded for an outstanding 12 months in which he helped Lille to the Ligue 1 title in France before securing a move to Arsenal.

The Ivory Coast international has made an impressive start to life at the Emirates Stadium, establishing himself as a regular in Arsene Wenger's first team, scoring twice and providing five assists in nine Premier League matches.

And that has helped put him in the running for African football's most prestigious individual award.

"It would mean a lot," Gervinho told Arsenal Player. "Every African player dreams of winning this award.

"I was choked to learn I got shortlisted for that award.

"There are so many good players in Africa that it's a pleasure just to know I am among the 10 best players.

"If I am fortunate enough to win it I will be very happy, even more so at my young age. If I don't win this trophy, I will still be happy to be one of the 10 best players of the year."

The striker will be forced to miss part of the Premier League campaign when he represents his country in the Africa Nations Cup early in the new year.

But he said: "It has always been like that. It is always difficult to leave your mates and your club in the middle of the season for another competition.

"I am doing it for my country so it is not in vain. It is always a great pleasure to fight for your own country."

Gone in the uprising that ousted Muammar Gaddafi is Al-Saadi Gaddafi, who dominated the game and intimidated players during the last years of his father's 42-year rule.

"It's about the ball and kicking the ball without fear and pressure so we can win for our country, for free Libya," said Ali al-Aswad, the manager of the national team and a former player for Tripoli club Al Ahli, the late dictator's favourite team.

Football had been in the shadows in Libya since February, when the revolt against Gaddafi's regime erupted in the North African country.

Players either left the country to play for clubs in neighbouring countries or joined the rebels.

Just days after anti-Gaddafi forces overran Tripoli in late August, assistant coach Abdul Hafid Arbesh went looking for football players around the chaotic capital.

He wanted to put together a national team to take them on an epic journey to Egypt for Libya's first international match under the red, black and green revolutionary flag that has replaced the old regime's green banner.

After a bus ride to neighbouring Tunisia, a flight to Libya's eastern city of Benghazi and from there another flight to Cairo, Arbesh's squad was in a stadium in the Egyptian capital, facing Mozambique in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match. Libya won 1-0.

"I brought the men together on the field and I held in my hand the new flag we put together on the bus and said: 'You are just like the rebels. You should fight like the rebels and make the mothers of the martyrs proud,"' Arbesh said.

Fresh from the front line, 25-year-old midfielder Walid al-Katroushi knew what to do.

Al-Katroushi was fighting alongside the rebel forces since April, when he traded football training camp in Tunisia for a war zone in his homeland.

He said he couldn't continue playing while so many people were dying in efforts to liberate their country.

"When I joined the rebels, I forgot about football," Al-Katroushi said in an interview during a training camp in Dubai.

"I changed my clothes. I shaved my hair. I forgot everything, even my family."

As a football player on the front line, Al-Katroushi said he was spoiled by the rebels. They respected him for leaving the game and joining the fight against Gaddafi.

"They gave me the best they had," Al-Katroushi said. "When there were not enough bulletproof vests, some fighters took off their own and gave them to me.

"They were very afraid for me and afraid that I would get hurt in any way," Al-Katroushi said.

"They were very kind to me. They said I was too gentle to face the bullets."

Gaddafi's two sons, Al-Saadi and Mohammed, dominated Libyan football and - along with their father - terrorised the players.

Al-Saadi Gaddafi served as the president of the Libyan football federation until he escaped to Niger in September. He also had ambitions as a player, using his money and influence to play in Libya and even, briefly, in Italy for Perugia.

"All decisions were with them," Al-Aswad said. "He would tell us when to play and how to play and if to play at all."

Al-Saadi would pull the national team off the field minutes before a match on the other side of the world, Al-Aswad said.

He'd bribe star players to score at some matches and threatened them with beatings if they scored at others. He ordered the destruction of a club in Benghazi.

Al-Aswad even alleges that Al-Saadi was responsible for the killing of a famous player, Bashir Riyan, in 2004.

"We suffered a lot," Al-Aswad said.

"It was like the ball only belonged to him and football players and the national team were his hostages."

Still, Libyan football has survived the regime and last month, the national team beat long odds to qualify for next year's Cup of Nations.

The team's new captain - goalkeeper Samir Aboud - is in the running for the African Player of the Year award after Libya defied political upheaval at home to reach Africa's top tournament.

Many players have family members and friends among the revolution's victims.

Ahmed al-Sgayer, a defender who also fought alongside rebel forces, was shot in the arm and was in hospital for weeks before returning to football.

Midfielder Abdullah al-Sharif lost an uncle in a NATO bombing and a cousin, who fought on the rebels' side.

His loyalty was always to football, Al-Sharif said.

"There's a different flag and a different anthem but I will always be proud to play for Libya," Al-Sharif said.

The Cup of Nations will kick off on 21 January and will be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. Libya will be in Group A along with Equatorial Guinea, Senegal and Zambia.

Next month, Libya will also play in the Arab Games, hosted by the Gulf country of Qatar, which sent war planes to Libya to help topple the Gaddafi regime.

It will face Jordan, Palestine and Sudan in the group stage of Middle East's biggest sports event.

Libya hosted the Cup of Nations in 1982 and reached the final that year, losing to Ghana. The North African country also reached the continental tournament in 2006 when it was hosted by Egypt.

A good performance in the Cup of Nations is the team's goal but Arbesh said the players are already dreaming about qualifying for the 2014 World Cup.

Libya has never qualified but Arbesh said he's always felt the country had talent that couldn't thrive because of the oppression.

"We needed support, not fear to win," Arbesh said.

"Without Gaddafi's shackles, we can go far. Very far."

Moroccan politicians were furious at the violent treatment of some Wydad Casablanca supporters who visited Tunis last weekend for the African Champions League decider against Esperance.

A diplomatic protest to their Tunisian counterparts said excessive force was used by police at the November 7 stadium during a match won by the home team and there was also trouble at the airport before fans flew home.

Playing behind closed doors this weekend is unconnected to these incidents as Club Africain are serving a two-match spectator ban for crowd trouble during a group game against ASEC Mimosas from Ivory Coast.

The 91-year-old Tunis club was also fined $100,000 and warned that it would be barred from Confederation of African Football competitions if supporters caused further trouble.

A solitary goal was scored in 180 tense minutes between Esperance and Wydad and it would be no surprise if the two-leg showdown of Club Africain and Moghreb proved equally close.

Its form on the way to the final of the second-tier African club competition with a $660,000 first prize suggests that the away-goal rule or even a penalty shoot-out might be necessary to separate the teams.

Both sides won and lost against InterClube of Angola and both won and drew against Sunshine Stars of Nigeria as they advanced toward the third Confederation Cup final involving the North African nations.

Etoile Sahel pipped FAR Rabat of Morocco for the 2006 title on away goals after two draws and FUS Rabat shocked CS Sfaxien last year by winning 3-2 in Tunisia having been held goalless at home.

Tunisian clubs have won the competition three times and Moroccan clubs twice since it replaced the African Cup Winners Cup and CAF Cup championships seven years ago.

Midfielder Zouhaier Dhaouadi and Chad-born striker Ezechiel Ndouassel have been key figures for Club as it seeks international glory 20 years after lifting the African Champions Cup - forerunner to the African Champions League.

Dhaouadi was a pivotal figure as Tunisia won the African Nations Championship for home-based footballers last February just weeks after the country celebrated the overthrow of long-time dictator Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali.

The midfielder captains Africain and his contributions for club and country earned him a nomination for 2011 CAF African Footballer of the Year with the winner to be announced during December.

Physically imposing Ndouassel needs a boost after Chad was eliminated from the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers this week and Sunshine Stars can vouch for his predatory instincts as he scored the goal that settled a semi-final last month.

Moghreb also boast a match-winner in Chemseddine Chtibi - a mid-year signing from FUS Rabat - whose unstoppable drive seven minutes into stoppage time took the Moroccans to the final at the expense of InterClube.

He has contributed four of the 24 goals scored by Fes in 16 African outings, one less than Hamza Abourazzouk and Tarik Sektioui, and 10 Moghreb players have been on target during a campaign that began last January in Benin.

The return match is scheduled for Fes on December 4 and apart from the prizemoney and prestige, the winning club take on Esperance next year for the African Super Cup and the chance of pocketing a further $75,000.

"We have decided to bring this matter up publicly because there are eight former Algerian internationals whose children are handicapped," former defender Mohamed Chaib told AFP on Wednesday.

"We have serious doubts over the effects of medication that we were given during training camps. We just want the truth," added Chaib, who is the father of three disabled girls.

"Nobody has dared to bring up this subject before. People have chosen to forget about what happened but we have been suffering for more than two decades now," Mohamed Kaci Said, a former midfielder, was quoted as saying in the Sunday edition of the newspaper El Watan.

The players all represented Algeria in the 1980s.

After last week's first leg in Djibouti ended goalless, Ethiopia hit the goal trail in emphatic style, with Omod Okwury (5), Shimeles Bekele (62, 65) and Getaneh Kebede (87, 90) on target.

The result sees Ethiopia progress to the group stage of the Africa zone qualifiers, which gets under way next summer.

Ethiopia has been drawn in Group A alongside South Africa, Botswana and the Central African Republic.

Bernard Kaanjuka's side dominated the first leg and it repeated the feat at home as Lazarus Kaimbi's double and goals by Heinrich Isaacks and Sidney Urikhob sealed a comfortable win.

It means the Brave Warriors are now in a four-team group where the winner will advance to another qualifying round over two legs, with the prize a place at Brazil 2014.

Kenya will join it after its 4-0 thrashing of the Seychelles followed the impressive 3-0 win in the first leg.

Edgar Ochieng opened the scoring in the 17th minute before Brian Mandela and Titus Mulama scored the second and third before the break.

Victor Wanyama sealed the win in the second-half to cap a comfortable qualifying performance.

Rwanda claimed a 3-1 win over Eritrea to record a 4-2 score on aggregate and progress to the next qualifying stage.

Olivier Karekezi, Jean-Claude Iranzi and Labama Bokota scored for Rwanda with Abraham Tedros's 90th-minute goal scant consolation for Eritrea.

Congo progressed to the next stage despite being held to a 1-1 draw by minnow Sao Tome e Principe after its dominant performance in the first leg.

Orgando scored first for Sao Tome before Francis N'Ganga levelled the score for Congo six minutes later, but the Diables Rouges progress with a 6-1 aggregate score after the 5-0 rout of the Green and Yellows.

The Democratic Republic of Congo also progressed after a 5-1 win over Swaziland gave it a 8-2 win on aggregate while Tanzania held on to a slender one-goal margin after its 1-0 defeat by Chad.

Mozambique's 4 - 1 victory at home to Comoros was added to its 1-0 win last week to see it through while Equatorial Guinea's 2-1 defeat by Madagascar was still enough for it to progress 3-2 on aggregate after a 2-0 win in the first leg.

Lesotho progressed due to the away goal it scored in the 2-1 loss Burundi after it drew 2-2 on aggregate while Togo's 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau was enough to see it through to the next stage.

Liberia's game against Mauritius was cancelled.

Cameroon's players say they would not travel from Morocco to Algiers for a match in the LG Cup Africa tournament because their federation had not fulfilled 'the minimum requirements with respect to them (the players)'.

Algeria's football federation cancelled the match and said it deplored the situation, calling it 'unacceptable and anti-sporting'.

The dispute reportedly centres on a US$30,000 ($29,451) appearance bonus promised to each player.

The players said that they raised the problems over payments a week ago and 'no solution was forthcoming'.

The match is a golden opportunity for the Selecao to test some of its upcoming players for future tournaments, most notably the 2014 World Cup, which Brazil is hosting.

After crashing out at the quarter-final stage of the World Cup in South Africa last year, which led to the exit of coach Dunga, Brazil is under increasing pressure from the media and fans to put together a comprehensive strategy for 2014.

Anything short of the title on home soil would be treated as a national disaster - a scenario coach Mano Menezes and the players are well aware of, especially after they flopped in the Copa America this northern summer bowing out in the quarter-finals.

To this end, Menezes has been using friendlies to try various combinations to get a sense of what sort of talent he has at his disposal.

But with the Brazilian national championship in its final stages, he has been forced to rely on mostly foreign-based players for last week's friendly against Gabon and the upcoming match against the Pharaohs.

However, stars such as the Real Madrid duo of Kaka and Marcelo won't be figuring in the team to play Egypt because of injuries.

The 19-year-old sensation, Neymar, who is being tipped as the star of the 2014 showpiece, is also not available due to his commitments with Santos in the Brazilian championship.

Neymar, who has drawn early comparisons with Pele, has appeared in 13 of 15 Brazil matches this year scoring seven goals and his absence will deprive an expected bumper crowd in Doha a glimpse of his famed talent.

That leaves the squad with only four players who have scored an international goal for the team - Daniel Alves, who has five; Luisao who has three; and Hernanes and Sandro with one each after both scored against Gabon last week.

Porto striker Hulk is also under tremendous pressure to perform, having not scored a single goal in six appearances for the national team, despite netting 35 for his club side last season.

"The Brazilian national team isn't the best in the world, the results have shown us this," said Menezes.

"We've four teams - Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and Uruguay - ahead of us in the FIFA rankings.

"We must get to that level again."

The Egyptians are also in a somewhat similar position as far as their recent results are concerned.

The three-time Africa Cup of Nations champion failed to qualify for next year's edition co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Before that it had failed to make the World Cup in South Africa, losing out to bitter rival Algeria in the play-off.

But it has hired Bob Bradley as its new coach and the former United States handler has been busy watching domestic matches in order to rebuild the Egyptian team.

"The match in Doha is the first opportunity for me to work with the players," said Bradley.

"I wish to stress the point that the game won't be an indication of the team's future because our preparation period has been quite short.

"Of course, when you play against Brazil, you want to do your best, because they're one of the world's best teams."

Ipswich Town striker Tamas Priskin scored a first-half brace before goals by Balazs Dzsudzsak, Vladimir Koman and Robert Feczesin finished the rout.

Germany came from behind to claim a 3-3 draw against Ukraine at the newly-renovated Olympic Stadium in Kiev.

Andriy Yarmolenko and Yevhen Konoplyanka put the home side 2-0 up at the Euro 2012 final venue, before Toni Kroos pulled one back for Germany in the 38th minute.

Serhiy Nazarenko scored the Ukraine's third on the stroke of half-time but goals by Simon Rolfes and Thomas Muller gave Germany a draw.

Elsewhere, Denmark beat Sweden 2-0 thanks to goals by Nicklas Bendtner and Michael Krohn-Delhi.

Bendtner, who is currently on loan at Sunderland from Arsenal, opened the scoring in the 34th minute before Krohn-Delhi sealed the win 10 minutes before the final whistle.

Scotland beat Cyprus 2-1 at the Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium in Larnaca.

Kenny Miller opened the scoring with a superb volley in the 24th minute before Jamie Mackie fired his second international goal.

Dimitris Christofi pulled one back for Cyprus when he lashed his shot into the corner three minutes later but it was not enough as Craig Levein's side held on for the win.

A Razvan Cocis own goal handed Belgium a 2-1 win over Romania at the Koning Boudewijn Stadion.

Belgium defender Daniel van Buyten scored the opener in the 11th minute and Cocis doubled the home side's lead two minutes before half-time with an own goal.

Daniel Niculae pulled one back for Romania in the 65th minute and Razvan Rat missed a penalty two minutes before the end which would have earned his side a draw.

Greece held Russia to a 1-1 draw at the Karaiskakis Stadium after Alan Dzagoev's second-minute goal was cancelled out by Kostas Katsouranis's 59th-minute effort.

Georgia beat Moldova 2-0 thanks to a first-half goal by Otar Martsvaladze and Jano Ananidze's penalty.

Both sides were reduced to 10 men in the 76th minute when Aleqsandr Kobakhidze and Moldova's Igor Armas were sent off.

In other results, Azerbaijan beat Albania 1-0, Burkina Faso drew 1-1 against Mali and Cameroon beat Sudan 3-1.

First-half goals by Christopher Missilou, Ladislas Douniama and Francis Malonga gave Congo a comfortable lead at half-time before Prince Oniangue and Harris Tchilimbou completed the rout after the break.

Kenya beat the Seychelles 3-0 thanks to goals by Pascal Ochieng, Kevin Kimani and Dennis Oliech.

Ochieng scored four minutes before the break before Kimani and Oliech sealed the win at the Stade Linite.

The Democratic Republic of Congo beat Swaziland 3-1 in Lobamba after Dioko Kaluyituka and Tresor Mputu Mabi gave it a comfortable 2-0 lead at half-time.

Sdumo Shongwe pulled one back for the home side after the break but Gladys Bokese's 73rd-minute strike sealed the win for DR Congo.

Tanzania beat Chad 2-1 thanks to Bakari Hamadi's 80th-minute winner after Mrisho Ngasa opened the scoring in the 11th minute.

Mahamat Ahmat Labo levelled the score within 60 seconds, but Hamadi rescued a win for the visitor 10 minutes before the final whistle.

Elsewhere, Mozambique beat Comoros 1-0 thanks to Miro's 56th-minute penalty.

In the other games, Namibia powered past Djibouti 4-0, Equatorial Guinea beat Madagascar 2-0 and Guinea-Bissau drew 1-1 with Togo while Eritrea drew 1-1 with Rwanda.

The host was celebrating the opening of the new D'Angondje stadium, but the party did not start in the best way - the kick-off was delayed for 18 minutes due to a power failure and the pitch was in bad condition.

The South American side dominated possession from the outset, and after only two minutes Jonas was close to opening the scoring after finding space, but he shot just wide.

In the fifth minute Hulk had his chance after a great assist by Adriano, before goalkeeper Didier Ovono saved it, but in the 11th minute the Gabon resistance ended.

The host failed to clear a corner kick, Bruno Cesar crossed, Ovono could not catch the ball and Sandro scored, although the home defenders protested he had his foot dangerously high off the ground.

Brazil's dominance increased after going in front as Hulk, Jonas and Hernanes were all close to scoring again, until in the 32nd minute Gabon had its first chance: a free-kick by Levy Madinda which came back off the crossbar.

Only two minutes after that Jonas shot from long range; Ovono parried it but Hernanes showed up and doubled the advantage with a header.

Before half-time Gabon had its second chance, when goalkeeper Diego Alves saved a great shot by Pierre Aubameyang.

After the break things continued in the same way, Bruno Cesar created the first chance after four minutes with a long-range shot, and nine minutes after the break Hulk was pushed in the box when he was facing the goalkeeper, but the referee did not award the penalty kick.

With about half-an-hour to go Brazil coach Mano Menezes started the substitutions and the game lost intensity. He sent Alex Sandro, Kleber, Willian and Dudu onto the pitch.

Bruno Cesar had one other chance, but Ovono saved at the expense of a corner kick.

As Brazil relaxed, Gabon took the chance to create some danger. Aubameyang and Daniel Cousin looked for their goal, but they never were able to put in the South American side''s victory in jeopardy.

The former Togo captain quit the international scene in April 2010, three months after the team bus was the subject of a gun attack which killed three people during the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.

A Togolese Football Federation (FTF) statement read: "Emmanuel Adebayor has reiterated his willingness to be back with the national team of Togo in view of the 2013 African Nations Cup and 2014 World Cup qualifiers.

"He hopes that a new football chapter can be opened.

"He is committed to playing at the start of qualifying games for those two competitions."

The 27-year-old, on a season-long loan at Spurs from Manchester City, has made himself available for next week's World Cup qualifier against Guinea Bissau after receiving assurances over the safety of players in future matches.

He told BBC Sport: "I am happy to say that I am returning for Togo and will avail myself for next week's game against Guinea Bissau.

"I decided to quit the international scene because I had concerns about the safety of players after the deadly attack in Cabinda.

"Things were not done properly. The FTF agreed with the key issues I raised and they have resolved that they will solve these problems for the benefit of all the players.

"I want to serve my country but the safety of all the players in the team must be paramount. I have been assured that this issue and others will be addressed."

He added: "Now that I am returning to the team it is up to the coach to decide whether he wants to play me or not.

"I am returning to the team as a member of the squad and I don't expect any special treatment. I will be treated as any other player in the team."

The three English Premier League players were joined by 2010 champion Samuel Eto'o and Ghanaian internationals Andre Ayew, Asamoah Gyan and Kevin-Prince Boateng on a list of nominees announced by the Confederation of African Football on Wednesday.

Moroccan forward Adel Taarabt, Senegal striker Moussa Souw and Mali midfielder Seydou Keita were also nominated.

The winner will be decided by a vote of Africa's national team coaches and announced at a 22 December ceremony in Accra, Ghana.

Former World Cup qualifiers Democratic Republic of Congo - called Zaire when they competed in 1974 - and 2006 participants Togo are among 22 teams involved in a whirlwind first round.

Return matches are slated for November 15 apart from the Somalia-Ethiopia tie, which will be played a day later because the first leg has been put back 24 hours as it is also being played in Djibouti owing to the Somali civil war.

The 11 overall winners plus Liberia, who received a bye when cash-strapped Mauritius withdrew, advance to the mini-league second phase starting next June where they will be joined by the 28 top-ranked nations when the draw was made.

Other teams in action this weekend include Kenya, under new coach Francis Kimanzi, and 2012 Africa Cup of Nations co-host Equatorial Guinea, which will relish some competitive fare after a year of friendlies.

DR Congo was the first sub-Saharan country to represent Africa at the World Cup and either side of being cruelly exposed in a 9-0 drubbing from Yugoslavia, suffered far less painful losses against Scotland and Brazil.

The Congolese recently hired experienced Frenchman Claude le Roy for a second spell as coach and he will be encouraged by a 3-0 win over Lesotho in neutral Pretoria last weekend as they prepare to visit struggling Swaziland.

Togo is trying to lure Tottenham Hotspur striker Emmanuel Adebayor out of national team retirement, but should have the better of Guinea Bissau even without the gangling goal poacher.

Adebayor quit after the Togolese were attacked by separatists and suffered two fatalities as they entered Angola for the 2010 Cup of Nations and the team has been in the doldrums since.

Guinea Bissau has been equally poor and history is also against it with Togo winning 3-0 overall when they clashed in a 2002 World Cup qualifier.

The AC Milan star has won nine caps for the Black Stars since switching his allegiance from Germany 18 months ago, scoring one goal, but claims the physical demands of international football are proving too much for him.

A statement on the Ghana FA website read: "The Ghana Football Association has received a letter from player Kevin-Prince Boateng on his decision to resign from the senior national team, the Black Stars.

"According to Kevin, the physical demands of playing for both club and country at high levels are taking a toll on his health.

"The player also explained that in order to remain healthy and stay off any injuries, he has consulted his doctors and family over the matter and has decided to take the decision to excuse himself from national duties since he is on a special training that he has to interrupt to honour national invitations.

"The Ghana Football Association is yet to take a position on the decision of Kevin-Prince Boateng."

Boateng failed to establish himself during a three-year spell in the Premier League with Tottenham and Portsmouth but has won plaudits since his move to Italy.

He recently hit a second-half hat-trick as a substitute as Milan came from 3-0 down to beat Lecce 4-3.

Siasia told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the suit accuses the Nigeria Football Federation of a breach of contract.

The federation fired Siasia and his coaching staff due to the team's failure to qualify for the African Cup of Nations. The organisation hopes to announce a new coach soon.

FIFA announced the 189th-ranked Mauritius' withdrawal without specifying reasons.

Mauritius, which was chosen to host the 2013 FIFA Congress, was drawn to play Liberia in a home-and-away series on 11 and 15 November.

Liberia now joins a group with Senegal, Uganda and Angola, which will be played between June 2012 and September 2013.

The group winner advances to a 10-team play-off round to decide which five African nations play in 2014 in Brazil.

Mauritius is the second country to withdraw from qualifying. Bahamas pulled out of its CONCACAF group in August because its national stadium could not host matches.

"He has spoken with the authorities, and has gone back on his decision to quit," Bonifacio Manga Obiang told AFP.

"He is the coach again. His contract runs until the end of the Africa Cup of Nations."

Manga Obiang added that Michel had blamed "external interference for his decision, but had since been given guarantees."

Equatorial Guinea is a co-host of the 2012 Cup of Nations along with Gabon, and Michel has been handed the task of taking the team beyond the competition's group stages.

That will not be easy for a nation ranked 152nd in the world by FIFA, and who will be playing in the tournament finals for the first time.

The draw for the finals will be held on Saturday in Malabo, with Ghana and Ivory Coast joining the co-hosts as the top seeds.

Continental heavyweights: defending champion Egypt, South Africa, Algeria, Nigeria and Cameroon have all failed to qualify for the tournament.

"The deadline is the kick-off," African Football Confederation (CAF) president Hayatou told a press conference in Malabo on the eve of the draw for the final phase.

"The main thing is that the football goes ahead. If the stadium is handed over to us on January 20 or on the 21st in the morning we'll be happy," he said.

"The day the World Cup started in Italy (in 1990) there were still bulldozers in the stadium in Milan," Hayatou added.

A CAF delegation has been inspecting venues over the last week in Libreville and Franceville in Gabon and in Malabo and Bata in Equatorial Guinea.

CAF Secretary General Hicham El Amrani said there were a few "operational details" to be finalised by December but he insisted: "We are delighted with what we have seen and the inspection has been excellent."

Some venues at Angola 2010 were only finished off a few days before the competition started."

In a statement, the Nigeria Football Federation outlined it would begin a search immediately for a replacement, with the hope of hiring one by Wednesday.

Siasia's team drew with Guinea in the final round of qualifiers to miss out on the tournament, leading the federation to demand an explanation for what it called "the embarrassment brought to the nation." Despite Siasia offering a public apology, fans angry with a string of failures by the national team demanded his removal, as did federation officials.

"Coach Samson Siasia and the technical crew has breached a key proviso in their contract with the (federation) and their services are therefore promptly dispensed with," the statement read.

Federation officials and Siasia could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Nigeria once dominated football in Africa, making the second round of the FIFA World Cup in 1994 and 1998, as well as winning the Africa Cup of Nations in 1994. To fans, Siasia represented that tradition, previously serving at the coach of Nigeria's under-20 team and drawing praise.

However, it appears the coach fell victim to the long slide the team has seen in recent years. The Super Eagles were knocked out of the World Cup last year after losing two of its group matches and scraping a 2-2 draw with South Korea.

Siasia took over in November 2010 after the federation sacked coach Lars Lagerback. Still, trouble haunted the federation.

After the World Cup, investigators accused former federation president Sani Lulu, ex-vice president Amanze Ugbulam, former technical committee member Taiwo Ogunjobi and ex-general secretary Bolaji Ojo-Oba of embezzling more than $6 million in tournament funding. Meanwhile, Amos Adamu, a former Nigerian government sports minister, received a three-year ban from FIFA after allegedly demanding bribes to influence his vote for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids.

Under Siasia, Nigeria won friendly matches with Argentina and Sierra Leone, and drew with Ghana. However, the team fell apart in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers, with Siasia also facing criticism from his players.