A tactical masterstroke from the bench made all the difference as Burkina Faso secured a hard-fought 1–0 victory over Central African Republic (CTA) in a tightly contested affair that came down to second-half execution.
The first half set a gritty tone, characterized by tight tactical structures and rising tempers. Central African Republic received two early bookings, with Edwin Quarshie shown a yellow card in the 28th minute for a foul, followed quickly by Sacha M’baka in the 33rd minute for a handball. Burkina Faso was not immune to discipline either, as Arsène Kouassi picked up a booking in the 42nd minute for simulation. The teams headed into halftime deadlocked at 0–0 after a physical opening 45 minutes.
The game’s defining moment arrived on the hour mark through an immediate impact from Burkina Faso’s bench:
In the 59th minute, Burkina Faso manager introduced Aboubakar Camara, replacing A. Tapsoba to inject fresh energy into the attack.
Just seconds after stepping onto the pitch, Camara struck the decisive goal, finishing off a setup by Zagré in the 60th minute to put Burkina Faso ahead 1–0.
Desperate to salvage a result, Central African Republic made a sweeping triple substitution in the 67th minute, bringing on Joel Ngoya, C. Yawanen, and D. Mokonou to replace Junior Sambia, B. Diomande, and the cautioned E. Quarshie. Earlier in the 65th minute, Burkina Faso had refreshed their forward line by bringing on M. Kaboré for L. Traoré.
Despite CTA’s late tactical shifts and five minutes of added time, Burkina Faso stood firm defensively to see out the full 90 minutes and seal the 1–0 victory.
