Mali edge Cape Verde in five-goal thriller
Mali revived their TotalEnergies Caf Women’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a tense 3-2 victory over Cape Verde in a dramatic group D match at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca on Sunday night.
Oumou Kone gave Mali the lead in the first half before Eve Pereira equalised for Cape Verde, who were looking for their first points at the tournament.
Fatoumata Niakate restored Mali’s advantage early in the second half, before Fatoumata Diarra scored what proved to be the decisive third goal in the 79th minute.
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It's wins for Cameroon and Mali to wrap up Matchday Two 👏⚽#SSFootball | #TotalEnergiesWAFCON2026 pic.twitter.com/kh2doHCXMM — SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) August 2, 2026
Cape Verde refused to give up and pulled one back through Alivia Kelly in the 88th minute, but Mali held on to claim three vital points.
The result moves Mali level with Ghana on three points after Cameroon had earlier beaten the Black Queens 1-0 to move top of group D with six points.
Cape Verde remain bottom without a point, but their performance showed character in a match they pushed until the final whistle.
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