Amid continental anticipation and international curiosity, Africa's four World Cup debutants have registered a string of disappointing results in their African Cup of Nations' opening games. Angola were crushed 3-1 by Cameroon, tiny Togo lost to DR Congo 2-0, Ghana lost to arch-rivals Nigeria 1-0 while Ivory Coast were the only winning team but with a slender 1-0 victory over Morocco accompanied by a below-par performance. With Africa seeking more places in the 2010 World Cup that will be staged in South Africa, the dark continent was shocked to see its representatives giving such disappointing performances, especially after FIFA President Joseph Sepp Blatter's latest comments on the issue. "If Africa wants to send more sides to the World Cup, their teams should give us something special in Germany this summer," Blatter told a press conference in Cairo ahead of the African Cup. "Playing good games in the 2006 World Cup will make us (in FIFA) meet and say they deserve to have more places." African Shame
Togo With such performances, analysts say, Africa is still far from securing more than five spots in the global event. "These teams are an embarrassment for Africa," former Nigeria manager Jo Bonfrere told FilGoal.com. "They play an amateur game that can't make them survive any World Cup side." The Dutchman, who was Nigeria's assistant coach in their 1994 African Cup and then led the Super Eagles as manager to the Olympics golden medal in Atlanta two years later, said the continent could have a chance if the traditional powerhouses advanced to Germany. "It is a big loss for Africa that teams like Cameroon and Nigeria didn't qualify, they play true football and could have given Africa some respectibility," he said. But hopes of good out-of-the-blue performances in Germany didn't completely fade out. Huge Gap
"These teams are an embarrassment for Africa," former Nigeria manager Jo Bonfere. A veteran German sports journalist, who is covering the tournament from Cairo, said that it is too early and harsh to judge the World Cup debutants from now. "I don't think they are an embarrassment for Africa, there is still a long way to go before the World Cup," Christoph Biermann, a senior editor in leading German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung, told FilGoal.com. "Togo lost their focus after the problem between their star player (Emmanuel Adebayor) and the coach (Stephane Keshi), while Angola and Ghana were hit by the injuries of Gilberto and Michael Essien respectively." Biermann, who made his trip to Egypt for extensive reporting on new World Cup sides, points out that even good performances from these teams in addition to Tunisia will not be sufficient to convince FIFA gives Africa more slots. "This is a very hard task for all of them. There is still a huge gap between African football and its European counterpart."
