Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang won’t be on the pitch on Tuesday, when Gabon attempt to reach the FIFA World Cup 26™. If they do qualify for a first global finals, however, it will be indebted to their poster boy’s exploits on the penultimate matchday.
Aubameyang sensationally scored four goals to propel Thierry Mouyouma’s side to a 4-3 comeback victory over The Gambia in Nairobi, Kenya. It kept Gabon one point behind pacesetters Côte d’Ivoire in the race for the automatic ticket. Les Panthères will welcome Burundi to Franceville on Group F’s final day, while Les Éléphants will host Kenya.
“We want to go to the World Cup and, to get there, we have to win games,” said the 36-year-old Marseille attacker. “I’m very motivated and when you have the chance to go to the World Cup, you have to be even more motivated.
“We have a very good group, I’m very happy to be part of it, and now that I’m 36, I just want to enjoy football, play and give people pleasure. At the moment I feel good physically and, yes, I had some great assists from my team-mates. I was effective, so I’m happy: four attempts, four goals. It was important for me to lead by example.”
The Gambia coach Johnny McKinstry added: “There’s no doubt that Aubameyang is a world-class player, and he’s proven that for 15 years. It was another great day for him. A striker of Aubameyang’s calibre was able to exploit the small spaces against a defence that had never played together before.”
Emulating legends
Aubameyang had already hit a hat-trick – he scored three penalties against Niger in 2013 – but he became only the seventh man to register four goals in African qualifying for the World Cup.
The great Roger Milla was the first, doing so in a 6-1 win over Zaire in 1981 that helped Cameroon reach their first global finals. Francileudo Santos was next in a 7-0 reverse of Malawi in 2005 – a result central to Tunisia pipping Morocco to a Germany 2006 ticket.
Faneva Andriatsima managed it against Comoros in 2007, and Emmanuel Adebayor against Swaziland the following year, though those exploits failed to get Madagascar and Togo to South Africa 2010 respectively. Islam Slimani’s quadruple, against Djibouti in 2021, also failed to get his country, Algeria, to the World Cup.
Mo Salah, who already had a qualifying treble to his name, did see Egypt capitalise on his four goals. They inspired an opening 6-0 win over Djibouti, with The Pharaohs going on to make it to North America with a match to spare.
Will Gabon join them at the biggest World Cup in history? You can find out by watching live on FIFA+ on Tuesday.
Main photo courtesy of FEGAFOOT
