Ethiopia off to AFCON with a bang

Ethiopia ended their pre-2013 Africa Cup of Nations build-up on a high with a win over Tanzania on Friday.

The Walia Antelopes beat Tanzania 2-1 in Addis Ababa.

It was a great day for new boy and ex-USA junior international striker Fuad Ibrahim of American second tier side Minnesota Stars who scored his debut goal on his third Ethiopian cap.

And it was Ibrahim who put Ethiopia on the road to victory with the opener in the 13th minute to see the home side take a 1-0 halftime lead.

Tanzania levelled in the 51st minute through Mtibwa Sugar midfielder Shabani Nditi.

However, Ethiopia made sure of the win in the 69th minute through Saint George’s promising 22-year-old midfielder Shemelese Bekele.

Ethiopia thus ended their build-up with a 100 hundred per cent run with two wins and a draw.

The Walia Antelopes began with a 1-0 win over Niger at the same venue on December 30. They followed it up with a 1-1 away draw in Doha against Tunisia on January 7.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia are expected to land in South Africa on Wednesday.

Ethiopia are in Group C together with Burkina Faso, Nigeria and defending champions Zambia.

They end their 31-year absence from the tournament on January 21 against Zambia at Mbombela Stadium.

Source: MTNFootball.com