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Congo host South Sudan at the Stade Alphonse Massemba-Débat in Brazzaville on Thursday for their opening game of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. They've been drawn alongside South Africa and Uganda in Group K.
Ranked 118th in the world, Congo are looking to make their first appearance at the AFCON finals since 2015, which was their seventh and the last participation in the cup. Since then, it's been a series of disappointments for the side in the qualifiers.
Now, ahead of a fresh campaign, the Red Devils come into the fixture on the back of a torrid run. After starting the year with a 1-1 friendly draw against Gabon, they refused to travel to DR Congo for their match against Niger, leading to CAF awarding the latter a 3-0 win. In their next World Cup qualifier, they got crushed 6-0 by Morocco.
Interim manager Isaac Ngata has summoned 26 players for this month's double-header against South Sudan and Uganda, including star forward Silvere Ganvoula, who has netted six goals in 18 games for the side.
Congo vs South Sudan Head-To-Head and Key Numbers
- These sides clash for just the third time in their history.
- In their previous two games, the team playing away from home won the fixture: South Sudan beat Congo 2-1 before Congo beat them 1-0 a few days later in March 2023, with both encounters coming as part of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers for the edition that took place at the beginning of this year.
- South Sudan are winless in their last six official clashes, drawing four times and losing twice.
- Congo are ranked 118th in the world, while South Sudan are 51 places below them, according to the latest FIFA World Rankings.
Congo vs South Sudan Prediction
Neither Congo nor South Sudan have been on a good run of form. The former's home record has not been great lately, while the Bright Stars have desperately struggled for goals.
Since this is only the first qualifier match, one can expect these sides to take a more cautious approach, resulting in a dour stalemate.
Prediction: Congo 1-1 South Sudan
Congo vs South Sudan Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Draw
Tip 2 - Goals over/under 2.5: Under 2.5 goals
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: Yes
