Somalia’s hopes of reaching the group stage of World Cup qualifying for the first time are over after a dramatic late defeat to Zimbabwe in Harare.
Heading into the game, the Ocean Stars held the advantage after winning the reverse fixture 1-0 to halt a run of 19 successive defeats and record their first ever victory in World Cup qualification.
Midfielder Marshall Munetsi opened the scoring after 77 minutes to level the tie 1-1 before Somalia hit back through Omar Abdullahi Mohamed with just five minutes of normal time to play.
Even when Admiral Muskwe put the home team back in front just one minute later, making it 2-2 overall, Somalia were still set to progress on away goals.
But a third Zimbabwe goal in the 91st minute, scored by Khama Billiat, broke Somali hearts and sent The Warriors through on aggregate, 3-2.
