Gabon’s qualifier loss to Gambia brings back airport drama

Gabon’s 2-1 qualifier loss to Gambia brings back airport drama as Aubameyang and others slept on the bare floor ahead of the crucial match

 

Gabonese national team line up for photo ops ahead of AFCON engagement. (Photo credit: cafonline.com)

 

Gabon lost their AFCON qualifying game in Banjul, Gambia and players and officials heap the blames on their ugly experience at the airport on their arrival on Sunday ahead of the Monday game.

 

Gambia ran out 2-1 winners on Monday with Modou and Musa Barrow both on the score sheet to go top of Group D, albeit on goal difference with Gabon neck to neck with the Scorpions but the Gabonese have been vocal about their plight.

 

Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and his teammates were forced to sleep on the bare floor at the Banjul airport on their arrival and no explanation of note was given to them in that regard, players, and officials took to social media to complain.

Ahead of the all-important Group D clash, The Gabon delegation were told they were not allowed to leave the airport because of an administrative problem and were forced to sleep on the floor before being allowed to leave in the morning after government intervention.

Aubameyang posted on Twitter in a reference to previous foibles blamed on the Confederation of African Football: "Nice job CAF, it's as if we were back in the 1990s.

"This will not demotivate us but people need to know and CAF need to take responsibility," he added later. "[It is] 2020 and we want Africa to grow but this is not how we will get there."

With Gabon losing the game eventually, Gambian representatives have refused to accept the blame and have told newsmen that the Gabonese contingents refused to get tested for COVID-19 on their arrival and the country was not ready to risk anything.