Gambia Crush Seychelles 7-0 as Sidibeh, Manneh and Barrow Ignite World Cup Dreams
There are victories that simply confirm expectations, and then there are results so emphatic they redraw the landscape of qualification campaigns. On a humid Tuesday in October, Gambia delivered a performance that will echo across the continent, overwhelming Seychelles 7-0 and reasserting themselves as genuine threats in Africa’s World Cup qualifying gauntlet.
It took just two minutes for Adama Sidibeh, Gambia’s emerging talisman, to set the tone. Sprinting onto a threaded ball, he slipped past a static Seychelles center back and tucked his finish deftly into the far corner. The early goal released any tension that might have survived the long flight, and from there Gambia played with the assertiveness of a side determined to banish the memories of last week’s wild 4-3 defeat to Gabon.
Seychelles, meanwhile, looked shell-shocked — their defense still bearing the bruises of a 7-0 drubbing by Ivory Coast four days earlier. Their fragile confidence was further eroded when Abdoulie Manneh doubled Gambia’s lead in the 24th minute, latching onto a loose ball at the edge of the box before rifling it low and hard past a helpless goalkeeper.
The match turned into a rout almost immediately after halftime. Sidibeh wasted no time claiming his second, making it 3-0 barely a minute after the restart with a close-range tap-in that showcased his poacher’s instincts. In the very next wave, Musa Barrow, long a symbol of Gambian attacking promise, pounced on a defensive lapse and finished from a narrow angle to make it four just seconds later.
The sequence spoke not only to Gambia’s fluidity in the final third but to the unraveling of Seychelles’ shape and self-belief. Barrow was relentless, storming through the left channel and, within five minutes, thundering home Gambia’s fifth. By the time Manneh returned to the scoresheet — twice, at the 67th and then again at the 76th minute — the contest had become an exercise in damage control for the hosts.
No red cards punctuated the contest, though tempers flared as frustration boiled over for Seychelles, whose players often resorted to desperate tackles and last-gasp clearances. The referee kept a tight grip on proceedings, his whistle a frequent companion as Gambia’s attackers poured forward at will.
For Gambia, this was more than a lopsided victory — it was a statement. Their own form this cycle has been maddeningly inconsistent: a narrow 2-0 win over Burundi in September, followed by an impressive 3-1 away triumph against Kenya, and then the heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Gabon. But today, all doubts were swept aside by a forward line firing on all cylinders. Sidibeh’s brace, Barrow’s clinical double, and Manneh’s hat-trick proved that the Scorpions have attacking resources few group rivals can match.
This offensive festival also provided a needed injection of confidence and a much-needed bump in goal difference. With points at a premium and qualification determined by fine margins, today's rout could be decisive come the final reckoning. The result positions Gambia solidly in the race, capitalizing on slip-ups elsewhere in the group and setting the stage for a riveting run-in.
For Seychelles, the statistics tell a grim story. This was their third consecutive shutout loss in qualifying, each heavier than the last — 0-4 against Gabon, 0-5 at Kenya, and now back-to-back 0-7 defeats. The campaign is quickly unraveling into a test of character rather than a contest for points. The current run extends a worrying trend, and with little reprieve in the schedule, Seychelles will have to search for answers quickly if they are to salvage any pride in the months ahead.
History has seldom offered Seychelles respite against Gambia, but never has the gulf appeared wider than it did today. Head-to-head, Gambia have now extended their supremacy, cementing their psychological edge and underlining the gap in resources, technical quality, and ambition.
As the final whistle sounded and the Gambian players embraced near midfield, there was a sense that they had turned an important corner. Their attack hummed, their midfield dictated tempo, and the defense was rarely troubled. The only question is whether this performance becomes the benchmark for what’s possible — or a singular, spectacular outlier.
For the Scorpions, the path forward is clear: consistency. If this team, led by Sidibeh, Barrow, and Manneh, can harness today's ruthlessness, the door to the World Cup could swing open wider than ever before. For Seychelles, the journey is now about halting the slide and finding reasons to believe again. The scales have tipped, and the campaign rolls on, its stakes only growing with every round.