Ivory Coast, the African champion, edged host Liberia, 1-0, with Gohi Bi Cyriac’s goal just before halftime in World Cup qualifying. Cameroon won, 3-0, in Niger under its new coach, Alexandre Belinga, and Senegal drew, 2-2, with host Madagascar.
u25a0 Argentina and Brazil drew, 1-1, in their World Cup qualifier in Buenos Aires, with neither of the South American powers able to secure the victory needed to kick-start their slow start to the 2018 qualifying campaign.
u25a0 Kevin De Bruyne scored a goal and added an assist in Belgium’s 3-1 exhibition victory in Brussels over Italy. The win underscored Belgium’s position as FIFA’s top-ranked team.