JOHANNESBURG: Serhou Guirassy celebrated captaining Guinea for the first time by scoring in a 1-0 win over Kenya on Thursday in a 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.
The regular scorer for Borussia Dortmund struck after 32 minutes to settle a Group D matchday two fixture watched by a capacity 25,000 crowd in Conakry.
When full-back Sekou Sylla burst into the penalty area and was blocked by a Kenyan, the ball broke loose to Guirassy, who fired past goalkeeper Bryne Odhiambo.
Earlier in the opening half, the tall 30-year-old Guinea striker saw his free-kick rebound off the woodwork.
Guirassy was a constant threat and it took a brave block by Kenya center-back Frank Odhiambo to prevent the match-winner scoring again soon after half-time.
He led Guinea after Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte made four changes to the team beaten in South Africa last Saturday, including dropping captain and center-back Saidou Sow.
South Africa top the table after two rounds with six points having trounced Eritrea 5-0 on Wednesday. Guinea have three points and Kenya and Eritrea one each.
Co-hosts Kenya qualify automatically for the 2027 AFCON and are involved in the qualifiers to gain competitive match practice. The other three countries are chasing one qualifying place.
