Sierra Leone’s Leone Stars suffered a painful 3-2 defeat to Zimbabwe on Wednesday after surrendering a two-goal lead in their opening match of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.
Playing at the Ben M’Hamed El Abdi Stadium, Sierra Leone dominated the first half and appeared firmly in control. Alie Conteh opened the scoring with a composed finish before Sallieu Tarawallie doubled the lead shortly before half-time.
Leone Stars went into the break 2-0 ahead after controlling possession and creating the better chances.
However, Zimbabwe returned from the interval with renewed intensity, pressing higher and capitalising on defensive lapses from Sierra Leone.
Zimbabwe pulled one back in the 71st minute, before completing the comeback with an equaliser four minutes later to make it 2-2.
With the match seemingly heading towards a draw, Zimbabwe struck again in the 85th minute to complete a dramatic turnaround and secure all three points.
The defeat will be a major disappointment for Leone Stars, who had built a commanding first-half advantage but were unable to maintain their momentum after the break.
Zimbabwe, meanwhile, produced a spirited second-half performance to overturn a two-goal deficit and begin their AFCON 2027 qualifying campaign with a memorable victory.
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