Burkina Faso and Senegal booked places at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations Saturday while defending champions Egypt will be shock absentees from the tournament after losing in Sierra Leone. A goal in each half from Moussa Sow — leading scorer in the French Ligue 1 last season — gave the Senegalese a 2-0 home win over the Democratic Republic of Congo and an uncatchable five-point Group E lead. Namibia upset visiting Gambia 1-0 to leave the Burkinabe with an unassailable six-point Group F advantage and seven-time title holders Egypt remained bottom of Group G after a late penalty condemned them to a 2-1 defeat. After collecting just two points from four previous qualifiers, Egypt believed they had no chance of reaching a tournament they won three consecutive times since 2006 and sent Olympic and youth team stars to west Africa. Libya reflected the political changes in the country by wearing a new strip and singing a new national anthem before defeating Mozambique 1-0 in neutral Cairo to replace Zambia as Group C leaders. Former champions Tunisia took a giant stride toward joining Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Botswana, Senegal and co-hosts Gabon and Equatorial Guinea at the 2012 finals by forcing a 0-0 draw at closest Group K rivals Malawi. Cameroon, four times Cup of Nations champions, trounced Mauritius 5-0 in the mini-league won by Senegal to keep alive slim hopes of making the finals as one of the best two runners-up. The absence of star striker Didier Drogba, who suffered concussion playing for Chelsea last weekend, did not prevent Ivory Coast raising their Group H goal haul to 17 from five games with a 5-0 Kigali drubbing of Rwanda. Dennis Oliech struck in stoppage time to snatch a 2-1 home win for Kenya over Guinea Bissau in Group J while Algeria came from behind under new Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic to force a 1-1 Group D draw in Tanzania. South Africa-based midfielder Tangeni Shipahu became the unlikely toast of Burkina Faso by scoring the 83rd-minute winner that gave the home team a rare competitive victory after three consecutive pool losses. Namibian officials have lodged a protest against B Faso’s Herve Zengue, who they claim is Cameroonian and not eligible to play for the country of his wife, and it will be heard in Cairo later this month.
