“This weekend, the qualifying for the next African Cup of Nations in 2012 starts and, as usual, there’s intrigue all round. The first round of games saw some surprises, with 2010 AFCON hosts Angola, Algeria, Mali, Morocco, Egypt and Togo hitting bumps on the very long road to Gabon/Equatorial Guinea. We had injuries galore, politics, new appointments and the potpourri that makes African football so colourful. In a guest piece for The Equaliser, Gary Al-Smith runs the rule over the upcoming fixtures and assesses the prospects of Africa’s qualification hopefuls.” (Equaliser Football)