The Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé will be hosting matches for the second round of fixtures in Group A this Wednesday, January 20th, 2020.

The home based Indomitable Lions [Á] will try to book their place in the knockout stage of the competition when they face Mali, while Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso will be looking for their first points in the competition.

Cameroon 🇨🇲 vs Mali 🇲🇱 (Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium-Yaoundé 5:00pm)

A win today for host country Cameroon or 2016 runners-up Mali will automatically earn them a ticket for the quarterfinals of the competition. Just like Cameroon over Zimbabwe, Mali recorded a 1-0 win over Burkina Faso.

Cameroon struggled in their finishing against Zimbabwe and will have to improve on that if they can over power the homogeneous team of Mali dominated with players from AS Real, Stade Malien and Djoliba. Alfred Meyong, Jacques Zoua and Bryan Soga were found wanting in their in their finishing last time out.

Mali on their part will count of AS Real of Bamako’s midfielder Ibrahima Sidibé who was voted Man of the Match in their win against Burkina Faso for inspiration.

Mali
The vastly experienced coach Martin Ndtoungou Mpile of Cameroon will try to outsmart the new wise-kid in the field, Nouhoum Diané of Mali who has built a team of young, very athletic and hungry to win players.

The game is finely poised and difficult to call, with Cameroon’s biggest advantage being the 12th man in the stands.

Cameroon’s captain Jacques Zoua has said they will approach every game like a final which will sound like good music in the ears of their belligerent home supporters.

Burkina Faso 🇧🇫 vs Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium – Yaoundé 8:00pm)

This, is a game of two teams that are looking to get themselves back on the rails after losing their respective opening fixtures to Mali and Cameroon. Burkina Faso who eliminated two times finalists Ghana, will like to confirm all the good that is thought of them.

Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso have never gone past the group stage in their previous two participations in the tournament. They greatly compromised their chances of doing so in the third time of asking after losing 0-1 to Mali in match day one.

The stakes are therefore high for Coach Seydou Zerbo and his team, especially as the Stallions are playing against Zimbabwe who also have their backs on the wall as well.

On their part, the Coronavirus hit and depleted Warriors of Zimbabwe who are in their fifth participation in the 12-year-old tournament reached the semifinal in the 2016 tournament in Rwanda, this is the time and the game to show their experience.

Zimbabwe
Against Cameroon they showed glimpses of their abilities especially in counter attacks but their cutting edge was not sharp enough to inflict any fatalities on the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.

Coach Zdravko Logarišić will be looking to improve on that as they seek to have an honorable performance in this tournament.

A loss for either teams in this game is synonymous to automatic elimination, therefore it’s a game of high stakes and we expect both teams to come out and fire from cylinders to keep their ambitions in the tournament alive.

In an occasion presided by temporal CAF president Constant Omari on January 15, at the Hilton Hotel, 4:30 pm (CAT), former CAF president Issa Hayatou was installed as CAF honorary president.

It was a follow-up of a decision taken by the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), on Thursday 10 December in Cairo, Egypt.

74_year_old Hayatou Issa Hayatou served CAF as president for a massive 30 years, from 1987 to 2017.

This gesture by every stretch of imagination is surely to salute Issa Hayatou’s immense role in the development of African football.

Meantime, CAF is going through a difficult moment without a president of her own at this period.

We are glad to inform and update you about the happenings across Europe on the ongoing January transfer window.

Here are some updates we are tracking for you at this time.

Arsenal have yet to make an impact in the current transfer window but could end up being involved in the biggest one this year.

Mesut Ozil has been strongly linked with a move away with Fenerbahce desperate to snap up the playmaker.

The German is keen on that, as well, and Mikel Arteta has given an update on his progress

Man Utd to battle Chelsea for Rice

The 22-year-old is in high demand

Manchester United will battle Chelsea for Declan Rice in the summer, according to ESPN.

The Blues have coveted Rice for some time after the midfielder came up through their academy before being released at age 14 and joining West Ham.

But United are also prepared to move for the England international, who could cost up to £70 million ($95m).

Drinkwater set for Kasimpasa loan

Danny Drinkwater is in Istanbul to complete a loan move to Turkish Super Lig club Kasimpasa – and Chelsea will subsidise his salary to help complete the deal.

Marseille in talks to sign Milik

Arkadiusz Milik is edging closer to a January exit from Napoli, Goal can reveal.

Marseille who jumped to the front of the queue ahead of Juventus and Atletico Madrid, with Andre Villas-Boas last week confirming their interest in him.

Zlatan plans Milan contract talks

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is planning on holding contract talks with AC Milan that could see him stay on at San Siro beyond his 40th birthday.

The Swede told Corriere dello Sport: “I’ll continue playing as long as I feel well. Then we’ll see, we’ll talk about my contract.

Pochettino is highest-paid coach in PSG history

Mauricio Pochettino is Paris Saint-Germain highest-paid coach ever following his decision to take the job with the Ligue 1 champions, L’Equipe reports.

The former Tottenham boss, who took over in Paris following the sacking of Thomas Tuchel, is reportedly earning €940k per month, before tax.

All Locatelli bids to be shunned

Sassuolo will be snubbing any bids for Manuel Locatelli, claims the Daily Mail.

Manchester City, Juventus and AC Milan are all said to be keeping a close eye on the midfielder with another window open.

Diego Costa would add character to Arsenal squad’

Diego Costa would add much-needed “character” to Arsenal’s squad if Mikel Arteta decided to make a move for the former Chelsea striker, saysWilliam Gallas, with a proven Spain international currently available as a freeven the opportunity to set his career back on track with Bournemouth, reports the Daily Mail.

The midfielder has impressed on trial at m Columbus Crew

DONE DEALS

Derby appoint Rooney as new manager

Rams appoint Man Utd legend on permanent basis

Derby County have confirmed they have appointed Wayne Rooney as their permanent manager on a two-and-a-half-year contract.

Ian Evatt confirms ‘realistic’ number of more Bolton Wanderers January window transfer signings

The Club is delighted to announce the permanent signing of the defender Pablo from Bordeaux. The Brazilian will wear the No. 3 shirt.

Southampton Football Club is delighted to welcome Kotoko SC, one of the leading professional clubs in Africa, to its growing portfolio of International Club Partners.

Over the course of the partnership, Southampton will support the development of Ghanaian Premier League Kotoko’s strategy both on and off the pitch.

Southampton will share their industry-leading coaching expertise to help Kotoko realise their ambition of building a sustainable Academy and pathway to the first team, with year-round remote support supplemented by regular visits to Ghana throughout the partnership from the club’s International Football Partnership team.

The partnership will include Academy staff exchange visits between the UK and Ghana, as well as opportunities for Kotoko’s young players to attend annual UK Player Development camps and experience the Southampton Academy methodology first-hand, when travel corridors open up and it is safe to travel.

Southampton will also support the development of Kotoko’s commercial and operational strategy through collaborating on key projects.

NANA YAW HAS A CLEAR VISION FOR ASANTE KOTOKO TO BE A SELF-SUSTAINABLE FOOTBALL CLUB, BOTH ON AND OFF THE PITCH

MARK ABRAHAMS
DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, SOUTHAMPTON FC
Based in Kumasi, Ashanti Region in Ghana West Africa, Kotoko have been champions of the Premier League a record 23 times, have won the CAF Champions League twice and were named the African club of the century by International Football Federation of History and Statistics (IFFHS).

Kotoko’s CEO, Nana Yaw Amponsah commented: “This partnership enables us to plug Kotoko into Southampton in such a way that Kotoko functions like Southampton. Kotoko would have everything Southampton has but to a level that reflects our different budgets. I believe that with the expertise and resources available at Southampton, we can tap into this and develop our setup to look and feel professional like Saints.”

Mark Abrahams, Director of Business and Community Development commented:
“During these challenging times we’re delighted to have agreed a long-term partnership to work with Kotoko. Nana Yaw has a clear vision for Kotoko to be a self-sustainable football club both on and off the pitch. We look forward to working with him and his team to support their development.”

Kotoko SC becomes Southampton’s first professional club partnership in Africa adding to a range of partners across North America, the Middle East, Australia and Japan.