Botswana 0-3 DR Congo, AFCON 2025-26 Highlights: Mbuku-Kakuta Combine As Leopards Cruise Past Zebras - As It Happened

Welcome folks. This is the start of our Botswana Vs DR Congo, AFCON Group D match live blog. Stay tuned for all the real-time updates, scores and more.

Botswana Vs DR Congo will be live streamed on the Fancode app/website.

The only way for the Zebras to finish 3rd in this group will be by beating DR Congo tonight, which means they have to win their first game of tournament and that too with a big margin.

Botswana XI: Phoko, Leinanyane, Gaolaolwe, Ditlhokwe, Johnson, Mohutsiwa, Cooper, Seakanyeng, Baruti, Boy and Sesinyi

DR Congo XI: Mpasi, Kalulu, Mbemba, Bushiri, Kayembe, Pickel, Elia, Kakuta, Mukau, Mbuku and Mayele

And we are underway for the first-half of this crucial Group D match between Botswana and DR Congo.

Positive start from Botswana as they have kept most of the ball to them with more than 50% possession.

Nathanael Mbuku tries to find a teammate inside the Botswana box but places too much power on it. Congo currently have an xG of 1.25 with a staggering 11 shots already but only one on target.

Breakthrough for the Leopards. Following a slick passing move, Nathanael Mbuku found the back of the net with a precise low finish inside the post in the 31st minute. Very well worked team goal that from the Congolese unit.

And Congo double their lead just like that and all that pressure is finally reaping its rewards and it is going to be a tough ending for Botswana.

Referee Ahmed Heeralall awarded a penalty to Congo after having a look himself and Gael Kakuta made no mistake from the spot, slotting it into the top right corner.

We will have six minutes as added time for the conclusion of first-half. It has been all about Congo and if they another before the whistle, then the game will be done.

The Leopards are in complete command after a dominant opening 45 minutes. Nathanael Mbuku broke the deadlock with a clinical team goal before Gael Kakuta doubled the lead from the penalty spot just before the break. Botswana has struggled to find any rhythm, leaving Congo firmly on track for all three points.

And we are back underway for the 2nd half. Let's see how long it takes before Congo triple their lead.

Congo's Charles Pickel climbs highest to meet a corner, but his well-timed header whistles agonizingly wide of the right post. It’s a huge let-off for Botswana as the ball goes out for a goal kick.

Exactly what the Congolese dug out was looking for. The Leopards have now surely taken the game away from Botswana's reach - a 3-0 deficit will be impossible for them to cover.

The referee has disallowed Congo's latest goal by Fiston Mayele, who produced a sensational finish from a cross with a clinical downward header into the bottom right corner. However, there was a Congolese hand ball in the build-up.

Botswana and Congo make two substitutions each. Noah Sadiki and Samuel Essende take the field for Congo while Monty Enosa and Godiraone Modingwane.

Michel-Ange Balikwisha showcases his skill with a surging solo run, weaving through the defense to carve out space just outside the area. He let fly with a low drive toward the bottom-left corner, but Goitseone Phoko read it well and gathered the ball comfortably to deny the Congo forward.

There is going to be a 7-minute added time for the conclusion of the 2nd half.

That's it. 3-0 in favour of the Congolese unit and they will join Senegal as the top two teams from Group D that has qualified for the Round of 16.

Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, DR Congo, South Africa, Tunisia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Mozambique, Sudan and Tanzania.

Tanzania secured the final spot as the best third-placed team following the results in Group C, narrowly edging out Angola and Comoros on goal difference.