Zimbabwe fought back to earn a hard-fought 1–1 draw against Angola in their African Cup of Nations (AFCON) group-stage clash in Marrakech, extending the Red Devils’ recent struggles to just three wins from their last 10 matches (D3, L4).

Angola entered the contest under pressure. Despite cruising through qualification unbeaten, a 2–1 defeat to South Africa in their opening group match left them needing a positive result to keep their qualification hopes alive.

The Red Devils responded with a strong start, dominating possession and tempo in the opening exchanges. Their first real opening arrived after 14 minutes when Gelson Dala danced past two defenders before firing straight at Zimbabwe goalkeeper Washington Arubi, who saved comfortably.

Just two minutes later, Angola came even closer. From a corner, Jonathan Buatu powered a header towards the top-left corner, only for Arubi to produce a stunning reflex save to claw the ball away.

Zimbabwe’s resistance was eventually broken midway through the first half. A precise cross from To Carneiro found Dala inside the six-yard box, and the forward made no mistake, drilling a low effort into the near bottom-left corner to give Angola a deserved lead.

The Brave Warriors gradually grew into the contest and were rewarded deep into stoppage time. In the sixth minute of added time, Knowledge Musona struck decisively across goal, finding the bottom-left corner to level the score just before the interval.

Angola began the second half brightly and nearly restored their advantage within five minutes. Buatu once again found himself in a promising position, but Arubi was equal to his close-range left-footed effort, making yet another crucial save.

Zimbabwe then enjoyed their best spell of the match and came close to turning the game on its head just after the hour mark. Ishmael Wadi fired across goal, but Angola goalkeeper Hugo Marques reacted sharply to push the effort wide of the bottom-left corner.

As the match entered its final stages, the Brave Warriors almost snatched all three points. Tawanda Chirewa unleashed a powerful strike from the edge of the box that looked destined for the top-right corner, but Marques produced a superb save to keep Angola level.

In the end, neither side could find a decisive goal. The result leaves Angola facing a daunting task in their final group match against seven-time AFCON champions Egypt, knowing qualification is now far from guaranteed.

Zimbabwe, meanwhile, must defeat South Africa in their final group fixture if they are to keep their hopes of progression alive.