Auba-less Gabon thrash poor Seychelles in Harambee Stars' WC qualifying group
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Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 03.09.25. | 17:59
Denis Bouanga put on a show, netting a first-half hat-trick in the Panthers smashing 4-0 victory over the bottom-placed team in Group F
Gabon are steadily marching towards the 2026 FIFA World Cup! The Panthers expectedly thrashed the bottom team in qualifying Group F, Seychelles, 4-0 and took over the leading position at least until Ivory Coast play their seventh-round match against Burundi (Friday, 22.00).
At the moment, Thierry Mouyouma's crew has 18 points, eight more than the third-placed Burundi, and if the Elephants beat the Swallows in two days, Gabon will be on the verge of their first-ever World Cup!
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang wasn't in the squad for today's clash due to a knee injury, as the boss Mouyouma used the fact that his team was facing the minnows to rest his best player.
Nevertheless, the Panthers didn't even need Auba, as Denis Bouanga stepped up, scoring a first-half hat-trick in the span of 34 minutes!
FIRST HALF HAT-TRICK FOR DENIS BOUANGA!!!!!
— The International Break (@InternatBreak) September 3, 2025
Seychelles🇸🇨 0
Gabon🇬🇦 3
4' - Bouanga⚽️
34' - Bouanga⚽️
38' - Bouanga⚽️ pic.twitter.com/BMfrVL66xK
Los Angeles FC forward bagged his first and second goal in the fourth and 34th minutes, exploiting good crosses from the right flank sent in by Teddy Averlant and Jeremy Oyono, and completed a hat-trick seven minutes before the break after a nice counterattack and Guelor Kanga's timely assist.
After the break, Gabon played more relaxed football, while their manager gave a chance to several subs, resting key players for the derby clash against Ivory Coast in six days, which will be the battle for the top of the group.
In the 89th minute, the sub Yannis M'Bemba put a cherry on top of the Panthers' triumph, netting his maiden goal for the national team. As for the home team, they can be happy they lost only 4-0 considering that they were 3-0 down at the break.
2026 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - AFRICA
Wednesday
Seychelles - Gabon 0-4 (0-3)
/Bouanga 4, 34, 38, M'Bemba 89/
Thursday
16.00: (19.0) Chad (9.50) Ghana (1.12)
19.00: (1.67) Angola (3.50) Libya (5.90)
19.00: (2.10) Guinea-Bissau (3.30) Sierra Leone (3.70)
19.00: (2.20) Madagascar (3.25) Central African Republic (3.45)
19.00: (7.25) Mauritius (3.60) Cape Verde (1.57)
19.00: (12.0) Sao Tome (5.60) Equatorial Guinea (1.27)
22.00: (1.20) Algeria (6.50) Botswana (16.0)
22.00: (1.17) Cameroon (7.25) Eswatini (17.0)
22.00: (1.37) Mali (4.50) Comoros (10.0)
22.00: (1.25) Tunisia (5.70) Liberia (13.0)
Friday
15.00: (15.0) Somalia (5.90) Guinea (1.23)
15.00: (9.00) South Sudan (4.40) DR Congo (1.40)
16.00: (2.65) Kenya (3.05) Gambia (2.90)
19.00: (1.85) Benin (3.45) Zimbabwe (4.50)
19.00: (22.0) Djibouti (10.5) Burkina Faso (1.10)
19.00: (8.00) Lesotho (4.20) South Africa (1.45)
22.00: (1.20) Egypt (6.50) Ethiopia (16.0)
22.00: (1.17) Ivory Coast (7.25) Burundi (17.0)
22.00: (3.00) Mauritania (3.05) Togo (2.55)
22.00: (1.10) Morocco (11.0) Niger (18.0)
22.00: (1.30) Senegal (5.20) Sudan (11.0)
Saturday
19.00: (1.37) Nigeria (4.50) Rwanda (10.00)
***odds are subject to change***
