Wissa stars as DR Congo spoil Zimbabwe homecoming in 2027 AFCON qualifying win

[p]The 30-year-old [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/newcastle-utd/p6ahwuwJ/"]Newcastle United[/a] striker struck on 30 minutes by poking a loose ball into the net after goalkeeper [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/chipezeze-elvis/djVaTv02/"]Elvis Chipezeze[/a] allowed a cross to slip from his grasp.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/d-r-congo/phn9mm8H/"]DR Congo[/a], last-32 losers to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/england/j9N9ZNFA/"]England[/a] at the 2026 World Cup, went further ahead in first-half added time when a [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wissa-yoane/b35gWzB2/"]Wissa[/a] pass sent [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/moutoussamy-samuel/G0ZLyJKh/"]Samuel Moutoussamy[/a] through to score from inside the box.[/p][p]Wissa could have finished with a hat-trick. His first-half shot beat Chipezeze only to trickle narrowly wide and he struck the woodwork just past the hour mark.[/p][p]After being outplayed in the opening half by a team 89 places higher in the world rankings, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/zimbabwe/APEVkV8h/"]Zimbabwe[/a] improved after half-time and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/munetsi-nyasha/2LonY10K/"]Marshall Munetsi[/a] scored a 93rd-minute consolation goal.[/p][p]It was the third goal by Munetsi from English second-tier club Wolverhampton Wanderers after a brace in a dramatic 3-2 away win over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/sierra-leone/0W8SXIIf/"]Sierra Leone[/a] last week.[/p][image alt="Match stats" id="548d122a-84eb-46ba-8552-c206a67ecd91" credit-line="Flashscore" guid="302ac313-5d8a-4a6e-817a-9abc31ed03eb" original-width="2160" original-height="2700" /][p]President Emmerson Mnangagwa was among the crowd that filled the 60,000-capacity National Sports Stadium on the outskirts of Harare for the qualifier.[/p][p]Zimbabwe last played at home in November 2021 before the Harare venue was deemed unsuitable for international fixtures, leading to lengthy renovations, including to the pitch.[/p][p]DR Congo, whose second of two AFCON titles came 52 years ago, top Group E with a maximum six points after launching their campaign with a 2-0 home victory over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/equatorial-guinea/vN7WWxY0/"]Equatorial Guinea[/a].[/p][p]Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea, who meet twice in November, have three points each and Sierra Leone are pointless.[/p][p]A first-minute goal from [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/zuniga-loren/YX47ELwa/"]Loren Zuniga[/a] sufficed to earn Equatorial Guinea a 1-0 win over Sierra Leone in Cameroon capital Yaounde.[/p][p]Equatorial Guinea are among the 11 of the 48 qualifiers for the AFCON group stage who must host matches at neutral venues as they lack an international-standard stadium.[/p][p]Central African Republic are another 'homeless' nation. They fell 1-0 to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/burkina-faso/bJOXzWga/"]Burkina Faso[/a] in Group F in Moroccan commercial hub Casablanca. [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/camara-aboubacar/QPd9PKmn/"]Aboubacar Camara[/a] netted the second-half winner.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/d-r-congo-phn9mm8H/zimbabwe-APEVkV8h/?mid=WWuKfZ6s"]Check out the match stats here[/a][/b].[/p]