CAN 2021 / Sierra Leone-Benin: the five Beninese tested negative for Covid-19 in France
Beninese Steve Mounié (right) battling Senegalese Youssouf Sabaly, July 10, 2019 in Cairo, during CAN 2019. AP - Hassan Ammar
Text by: Nicolas Bamba Follow
3 min
After the controversy around the unplayed match between Sierra Leone and Benin on Tuesday, March 30, the five Benin internationals who had tested positive for Covid-19 in Freetown returned to France.
And all of them have tested negative by their respective clubs.
Steve Mounié (Brest), Cédric Hountondji and Jodel Dossou (Clermont) were even able to play this weekend of April 3-4.
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The light must still be shed around the Sierra Leone-Benin match, the last
qualifying
meeting
for CAN 2021
still not played.
As a reminder, the two selections were to face each other in Freetown on Tuesday March 30 for a decisive face-to-face in Group L, where Nigeria (14 points) is already assured of first place and where only second remains. to be awarded (7 points for Benin, currently second, and 4 points for Sierra Leone, third).
This is the last qualifying place for the next continental tournament.
The match could not be held after the
imbroglio around the positive tests for Covid-19 of five Squirrels
: Khaled Adénon, Saturnin Allagbé, Jodel Dossou, Cédric Hountondji and Steve Mounié.
Five major players from the Beninese selection, tested positive ... three hours before kick-off.
The Beninese, ulcerated and convinced of a deception, refused to play.
And after much tension and negotiations, the match was
postponed to June
.
Hountondji, Dossou and Mounié played
The end of the story is not yet known, but the return of these five players to France after this international parenthesis brings water to the mill of suspicion about what happened in Freetown: none of these players has not tested positive for Covid-19 by the four clubs concerned.
The last result concerning Khaled Adénon fell on the evening of Saturday April 3: the defender is negative.
He was not in the group of Avranches, resident of National, who won in Bastia the day before (1-0).
On the other hand, the two Clermontois were on the ground Saturday against Niort, during the 31st day of Ligue 2 (0-0): defender Cédric Hountondji played the entire match, while Jodel Dossou entered game at the 62nd.
Clermont occupies third place in the championship.
This Sunday, April 4, Steve Mounié was the holder at the forefront of the Brest attack, beaten in Lorient on the occasion of the 31st day of Ligue 1 (1-0).
As for goalkeeper Saturnin Allagbé, he is in the Dijon group which will face Olympique de Marseille in the evening.
Unless the titular goalkeeper, Anthony Racioppi, is unavailable, he will be a replacement at the Vélodrome.
Five players tested negative, including at least three who were able to play this weekend in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. All only four days after the controversy in Freetown.
Accusations of deception are unlikely to abate after that.
On Instagram, Cédric Hountondji also relayed a message highlighting this illogicality.
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