On Monday’s AFCON qualifier against Guinea the Waliyas once again failed to register a point and put their hopes of qualifying to the tournament in jeopardy.
The Walias lost the game 2-3 even though it was a much better performance than Friday’s game.
The team was able to continuously reach at the final third of the opposition. Perhaps Guinea taking the lead early on in the game wasn’t the ideal start. Liverpool player and national team Captain Naby Kieta opened the scoring in the 4th minute.
After the goal Ethiopia managed to control the game and allowed Guinea very little chance to express themselves. This was rewarded in the 34th minute as Kenean Markneh slotted home a sumptuous strike after a nice build up in the box and a back heel assist from Chernet Gugsa.
Guinea retook the lead after 8 minutes thanks to Ilaix Moriba’s strike after poor defending from Ethiopia.
The Waliya’s attempt to get back into the game in the second half didn’t bear fruit and they only managed to get a cancellation goal at the death through Kitika Jima.
After the game Ethiopia national team head coach Webetu Abate emphasized that the performance was a much better one than Friday and even though the chance of progressing to AFCON is slim it’s not over.
Perhaps the most striking comment he provided was regrading his players’ consistency by insisting that it’s hard to find players who are consistent at this level and even if a coach who is a lot better takes over they will face the same problems.
He also stated the issue of a number 9 in the national team which has been hindering the team’s ability to make its chances count.
Ethiopia will have to face Egypt and Malawi knowing that six points from those games might not be enough to progress.
