Kenya drawn with Nigeria and Tunisia

Kenya have been handed a tough group in the third and final round of qualification for the 2010 World Cup/Africa Cup of Nations following the draw done in Zurich on Wednesday.

Harambee Stars are in Group Two together with red-hot Nigeria, Tunisia and Mozambique.

Twenty teams were included in the draw and placed in five groups of four teams each. Winners of each group will qualify for the World Cup in South Africa while the top placed three teams proceed to the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.

Nigeria, as the top seeded team, start as favourites from Group Two to clinch the ticket to South Africa. They have been the form team in Africa going through the last group phase of qualification with an astonishing 100 percent record.

Tunisia have appeared in the World Cup before, are perennial participants in the African finals and will be considered the greatest threat to Nigeria’s ambitions of making a return to football’s grandest stage.

Kenya and Mazombique will be considered the underdogs to fight it out for the third sport that will guarantee qualification to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.

Have to fend off challenge

Mozambique advanced to this stage after clinching second position in a group that also had Cote d’Ivoire, Madagascar and Botswana.

They are no pushovers, narrowly losing 0-1 to Cote d’Ivoire in Abidjan and drawing 1-1 in the reverse fixture in Moputo.

Kenya surprised pundits by setting the pace in the first group phase only to lose the top position to Guinea in a final decider match in Conakry. They qualified as one of the best runners-up.

A difficult looking Group One has Cameroon, Morocco, Gabon and 2006 first time World Cup participants Togo.

Group Three comprises North Africa rivals Egypt and Algeria together with Zambia and Cecafa representatives Rwanda while Group Four is composed of Ghana, Mali, Benin and Sudan.

Ivory Coast start as favourites in Group Five and will have to fend off the challenge of Guinea, Burkina Faso and Malawi.

The draw was held at Fifa’s headquarters in Zurich and attended by Fifa president Sepp Blatter. “This is a great day for Fifa. Twenty ten (2010) is the first Fifa World Cup taking place in Africa.

“It is also the first time in history that six African teams will play at a Fifa World Cup,” Blatter said on the world soccer body website.

South Africa as hosts have an automatic place in the tournament handing Africa an unprecedented six nation representation. The qualifiers resume in March and conclude in November next year.