2011 African U-23 Championship
بطولة إفريقيا تحت 23 سنة لكرة القدم 2011
Tournament details
Host countryMorocco Morocco
Dates26 November – 10 December
Teams8 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s)2 (in 2 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Gabon (1st title)
Runners-up Morocco
Third place Egypt
Fourth place Senegal
Tournament statistics
Matches played16
Goals scored35 (2.19 per match)
Top scorer(s)Morocco Abdelaziz Barrada
Nigeria Raheem Lawal
(3 goals)

The 2011 African U-23 Championship was the first edition of the football tournament for players under 23 years.[1] It was originally scheduled to be hosted by Egypt from 26 November to 10 December 2011. However, less than two months prior to the start of the tournament, Egyptian authorities decided against hosting the competition because of security concerns.[2] On 13 October 2011, Morocco was chosen as the replacement to host the tournament.[3]

The tournament also doubles up as the qualifiers for the 2012 Summer Olympics. The top 3 placed teams qualified automatically for the 2012 Summer Olympics football tournament, while the 4th best placed team qualify for a play-off with an AFC counterpart.[4]

Qualified teams

The Confederation of African Football chose to create a tournament and qualifying phase to decide which associations could represent Africa at the 2012 Olympic Games. Of CAF's 53 association nations, 39 agreed to participate in the qualifiers for the tournament.

To qualify for the tournament, participating nations had to overcome three two-legged qualifying stages.

Qualified teams:

Venues

Marrakech
Locations of the 2011 CAF U-23 Championship venues
 Tangier
Stade de Marrakech Ibn Batouta Stadium
Capacity: 45,000 Capacity: 45,000

Draw

The draw for the tournament was held on 24 September 2011 during the CAF Executive Committee meeting in Cairo, Egypt.[5]

Match officials

The following referees were chosen for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.[6]

Referees Linesmen

Cameroon Néant Alioum
The Gambia Bakary Gassama
Kenya Sylvester Kirwa
Madagascar Hamada Nampiandraza
Mauritania Ali Lemghaifry
Morocco Bouchaïb El Ahrach
Tunisia Slim Jedidi
Zambia Janny Sikazwe
Reserve
Ghana Joseph Lamptey
Guinea Aboubacar Mario Bangoura

Burundi Jean-Claude Birumushahu
Cameroon Moussa Yanoussa
Republic of the Congo Richard Bouende-Malonga
Eritrea Angesom Ogbamariam
Kenya Aden Marwa Range
Malawi Moffat Champiti
Morocco Redouane Achik
Rwanda Felicien Kabanda
Seychelles Jason Damoo
Tunisia Anouar Hmila
Reserve
Djibouti Yacin Hassan Egueh

Squads

Group stage

All times given as local time (UTC)

If two or more teams tied in their points, the following tie-breaker is used:[7]

  1. Points in the matches between the concerned teams,
  2. Goal difference in the matches between the concerned teams,
  3. Number of goals in the matches between the concerned teams,
  4. Goal difference in all group matches,
  5. Number of goals in all group matches,
  6. Fair Play point (number of yellow and red cards),
  7. Drawing of lots.

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Senegal 3 2 0 1 3 2 +1 6 Advance to knockout stage
2  Morocco 3 2 0 1 2 1 +1 6
3  Nigeria 3 1 0 2 5 4 +1 3
4  Algeria 3 1 0 2 2 5 −3 3
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source:
Nigeria 0–1 Morocco
Report Barrada 28' (pen.)
Referee: Sylvester Kirwa (Kenya)
Algeria 1–0 Senegal
Benaldjia 77' Report
Referee: Néant Alioum (Cameroon)
Morocco 1–0 Algeria
Tighadouini 59' Report
Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)
Senegal 2–1 Nigeria
Mbodj 34'
Sané 42'		 Report Uchechi 49'
Referee: Slim Jedidi (Tunisia)
Nigeria 4–1 Algeria
Lawal 47', 75', 85'
Uchechi 87'		 Bounedjah 42'
Referee: Bakary Papa Gassama (Gambia)
Morocco 0–1 Senegal
Report Wade 31'
Referee: Hamada Nampiandraza (Madagascar)

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Egypt 3 2 0 1 3 1 +2 6 Advance to knockout stage
2  Gabon 3 1 1 1 4 3 +1 4
3  Ivory Coast 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
4  South Africa 3 0 2 1 2 4 −2 2
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source:
Egypt 1–0 Gabon
Magdi 50' Report
Referee: Bakary Papa Gassama (Gambia)
South Africa 1–1 Ivory Coast
Bhengu 21' Report Griffiths 81'
Referee: Bouchaïb El Ahrach (Morocco)
Gabon 1–1 South Africa
Lengoualama 80' Report Masango 40'
Referee: Ali Ould Lemghaifry (Mauritania)
Ivory Coast 1–0 Egypt
Koné 82' Report
Referee: Hamada Nampiandraza (Madagascar)
Egypt 2–0 South Africa
El Nenny 46'
Mohsen 63'		 Report
Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)
Gabon 3–1 Ivory Coast
Ndong Mba 46', 49' (pen.)
Yacouya 78'		 Traoré 30'
Referee: Slim Jedidi (Tunisia)

Knockout stage

All times given as local time (UTC+1)

 
Semi finalsFinal
 
      
 
6 December
 
 
 Senegal0
 
10 December
 
 Gabon (a.e.t.)1
 
 Gabon2
 
7 December
 
 Morocco1
 
 Egypt2
 
 
 Morocco3
 
Third place play-off
 
 
10 December
 
 
 Senegal0
 
 
 Egypt2

Semi-finals

Senegal 0–1 (a.e.t.) Gabon
Report Poko 119'
Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)
Egypt 2–3 Morocco
Salah 36'
Shroyda 82'		 Report Barrada 1', 9'
Mokhtar 66'
Referee: Néant Alioum (Cameroon)

Third place play-off

Senegal 0–2 Egypt
Report Shroyda 32'
Gomaa 68'
Referee: Slim Jedidi (Tunisia)

Final

Gabon 2–1 Morocco
Obiang 33'
Nono 40'		 Report Mokhtar 21'
Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Hamada Nampiandraza (Madagascar)
 2011 CAF U-23 Championship winners 

Gabon
First title

Best eleven

The team of the tournament with substitutes:[8]

Goalscorers

3 goals
2 goals
1 goal

Criticisms

Some have questioned the need for the tournament and believe that the CAF-organised Under-23 football tournament, the 2011 All-Africa Games' football tournament should have been used as a qualifying tournament. The increase in number of national U-23 fixtures caused some domestic league schedules to be revised and some league games took place with weakened teams.[9]

There has been criticism from fans towards clubs who have not allowed their players to participate in the qualifying stages as the tournament is not featured on the FIFA Calendar whilst the Olympics tournament is. In effect this means that African nations can call on European-based players for the Olympic tournament who were not able to participate in qualifying due to club commitments.[10]

Qualified teams for Summer Olympics

The following three teams from CAF qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics men's football tournament.

Team Qualified on Previous appearances in Summer Olympics1
 Gabon6 December 2011[11]0 (Debut)
 Morocco　6 December 20116 (1964, 1972, 1984, 1992, 2000, 2004)
 Egypt10 December 2011[11]10 (1920, 1924, 1928, 1936, 1948, 1952, 1960, 1964, 1984, 1992)
1 Bold indicates champions for that year.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Football - 2012 Olympic qualifying tournament". bbc.co.uk. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  2. ↑ Egypt denied from staging Olympic qualifiers; FilGoal.com, 10 October 2011.
  3. ↑ Morocco to host Olympic qualifying tournament; BBC, 13 October 2011.
  4. ↑ "Egypt hosting Olympic qualifier". FIFA. Archived from the original on 26 October 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  5. ↑ "Egypt to host CAF U-23 Championship serving as 2012 London Olympic qualifiers". cafonline.com. Confederation of African Football. 22 August 2011.
  6. ↑ "Referees". CAF Online. Confederation of African Football. Archived from the original on 21 November 2011. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  7. ↑ "Regulations of the African U-23 Championship, Morocco 2011" (PDF). CAF. Retrieved 30 November 2011. (see art. 35.6)
  8. ↑ "Best eleven CAF U-23 African Championship 2011". CAF Online. Confederation of African Football. 10 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  9. ↑ "Who is fooling who?". Botswana Gazette. 26 January 2011. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  10. ↑ "Ghana's U-23 soccer team transit through Nairobi". MichezofAfrika.com. 7 April 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  11. 1 2 "Gabon-and-Maroc-earn-London-2012 berths". FIFA.com. 17 December 2011. Archived from the original on 10 September 2011.
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