Ten months after his arrival in Sudan, Ghanaian coach Kwesi Appiah is already the hero of an entire people, with his convincing results at the head of the Nile Crocodiles currently leaders of Group B of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
In a Group B which is full of juggernauts like Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo, without forgetting Togo and Mauritania, no one was paying too much for Sudan, just like its southern neighbor. But it is the Nile Crocodiles, coached by Kwesi Appiah, who rule the group with first place, after four days.
If he was appointed in September 2023, it was only in October, on the 17th precisely, that Kwesi Appiah, 63, began his work on the Sudan bench with a victory (1-0) in a friendly against Chad. A success which helped restore confidence to the group and calmly begin the World Cup qualifiers in November.
The Crocodiles hosted the Togo Sparrowhawks for the first day and held the 2006 Mondialists in Germany to a draw (1-1). Before signing a victory against the Democratic Republic of Congo for the second day, which no one has been able to explain until then: 1-0 on an own camp from Charles Pickel who gave in to the Sudanese wave . This historic result was the start of a great series since Sudan will go on a six-match unbeaten run (5 wins and 1 draw), before losing (1-2) in a friendly in March 2024 against Guinea-Bissau.
Sudan dreams of a first participation in the World Cup
The results already spoke for themselves, but Kwesi Appiah and his staff visibly wanted more and performed flawlessly this month, during the 3rd and 4th days of the qualifiers, by winning in Nouakchott (2-0 ) against Mauritania of Amir Abdou, then at home against the southern neighbor (3-0), this Tuesday, to keep the lead of the group with 10 points in 4 games, being undefeated. An already exceptional performance, all with relatively less known players like Yassir Mozamil, Abdel Rahman and Saif Tere, which could be validated by a historic first qualification for a World Cup final phase. Which would be absolutely fabulous for the winner of the 1970 Can, who has regressed in recent years, with four editions of the African Cup of Nations missed before his return in 2022 to Cameroon where he will not have progressed beyond the group stage.
With square foot
