AFCON 2027 qualifiers: Sébastien Desabre targets 12 points ahead of DR Congo’s trip to Zimbabwe

28.09.26 12:00 AFCON - Africa Cup of Nations

Zimbabwe

-

:

DR Congo

-

On the eve of the trip to Zimbabwe, Sébastien Desabre outlined the ambitions of the DR Congo for the 2027 AFCON qualifiers. The Leopards coach wants to build on his team’s strong start and move towards qualification as quickly as possible.

After their 2-0 victory over Equatorial Guinea on Thursday in Kinshasa, the Congolese will face the Warriors this Monday, September 28, at the National Sports Stadium in Harare. Zimbabwe also won its opening match, beating Sierra Leone 3-2. The two teams therefore have three points apiece ahead of their meeting.

Desabre sets a target of 12 points

Speaking at a press conference in Harare on Sunday alongside Nathanaël Mbuku, Sébastien Desabre clearly outlined the path he wants his team to follow in this campaign.

“We have a precise roadmap. We will approach the matches one after another. The objective is to take these 12 points as quickly as possible.”

The French coach also stressed his desire to secure qualification as early as possible:

“The objective is to qualify for the AFCON as quickly as possible.”

DR Congo made a perfect start to its campaign with a 2-0 win over Equatorial Guinea. Chancel Mbemba opened the scoring in the fourth minute with a header from a set piece taken by Nathanaël Mbuku. Yoane Wissa then scored the second goal after the break. The Leopards also hit the woodwork twice during the match.

Read: DR Congo - Equatorial Guinea: “We have to win,” Sébastien Desabre turns up the pressure!

A trip where DR Congo remain without a win

The Harare fixture also has a statistical peculiarity. DR Congo have never won away to Zimbabwe in their previous official matches in the Zimbabwean capital.

Their three previous trips ended in a defeat in 1994 (1-2), another in 2000 (2-3), and then a draw in 2018 (1-1).

The last meeting between the two teams had nevertheless gone decisively in the Leopards’ favour. On June 30, 2019, DR Congo won 4-0, but the match was played in Cairo during the group stage of the 2019 AFCON.

In Harare, Desabre will therefore face a Zimbabwe team that also began these qualifiers with a victory. With three points each after the opening matchday, this duel pits the two teams that made the best start in Group E against each other. DR Congo will look to retain top spot in the group and give substance to the objective set by their coach: taking all 12 available points as quickly as possible.

Nouya M'toama

Editorfr, en

Versatile journalist specializing in sports and political news, with extensive experience across radio, print and digital media platforms.

Related teams and leagues

Zimbabwe

DR Congo

AFCON - Africa Cup of Nations