Wins for Ivory Coast, Ghana and Algeria

(CNN) — Algeria, Ghana and the Ivory Coast all celebrated victories in the third round of matches in African qualifying for the 2010 World Cup finals, FIFA.com report.

• Kenya also collected a vital win on Saturday, but Morocco only drew at home to Togo and their qualification prospects now appear very slim.
• Roger Lemerre’s Moroccan side were held to a 0-0 stalemate in their Group A clash in Rabat after missing a 33rd minute penalty through the highly-rated Mounir El Hamdaoui.
• Having lost 2-1 to leaders Gabon in their opening match, Morocco have now dropped five points at home and find themselves four points off top spot, having played one game more.
• There was another goalless draw in Group B where the top two, Tunisia and Nigeria, cancelled each other out in Rades.
• That result leaves Tunisia two points clear of Nigeria on seven points at the top of the table. Kenya took advantage of the draw by closing the gap in third place with a 2-1 victory over bottom side Mozambique in Nairobi.
• Algeria continue to look strong in Group C and they remain top with seven points from three matches after a 2-0 victory at second-placed Zambia.
• Algeria had gone an astonishing four years without an away goal in World Cup qualifiers, but their victory in Chililabombwe ended that unwanted statistic.
• Group favorites Egypt, who are currently at the Confederations Cup, are six points behind with a game in hand and look to have a mountain to climb to close the gap on their north African neighbors.
• Meanwhile, Ghana look set for their second successive World Cup finals after two goals from NAC Breda striker Matthew Amoah saw them win 2-0 in Sudan to maintain their 100 per cent record after three matches in Group D.
• The game of the day came in Ouagadougou, where visitors Ivory Coast won 3-2 against Burkina Faso in a battle of the two unbeaten sides in Group E.
• Both teams had claimed a maximum six points from two matches prior to Saturday, but the Elephants are now clear favorites to qualify for South Africa after a thrilling encounter.
• Barcelona’s Yaya Toure opened the scoring in the 11th minute but Jonathan Pitroipa levelled in the 27th-minute. A Mamadou Tall own goal and a third from Tottenham midfielder Didier Zokora gave the visitors some breathing space before Aristide Bance pulled one back with 12 minutes remaining.
• The return game in Abidjan on September 5 will definitely determine who qualifies for the finals.