Preview: Comoros vs Madagascar - prediction, team news, lineups

Comoros and Madagascar will lock horns at the neutral Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan on Wednesday in a high-stakes penultimate clash in the race for a 2026 World Cup spot.

Only one point separates both nations, with Les Coelacantes — the nominal hosts for this encounter — sitting third on 15 points, just behind Barea, who trail leaders Ghana by three.

Match preview

Whether the race for a direct ticket goes down to the wire will depend on the results from matchday nine in Group D’s fiercely competitive bracket, with Ghana hoping for a slip-up from Madagascar, though a share of the spoils in this fixture would best favour Mali, who are fourth on 12 points.

Should either scenario unfold and the Black Stars win their own game against the Central African Republic, they would seal direct qualification, while a stalemate in Abidjan would keep the Eagles’s playoff hopes alive ahead of their final-day clash, provided they beat Chad.

This makes Wednesday’s game a crucial one for both Comoros and Madagascar, as each side looks to build on victories from the previous outing, with Les Coelacantes heading into the clash on the back of a 2-0 away success over the CAR that continued a curious pattern of winning the second match of their double headers after losing the first.

Stefano Cusin’s men have now alternated between victories and defeats in their last six World Cup qualifiers, a run preceded by triumphs in their opening two matches of the campaign — both played at the Stade de Moroni.

With three wins from four when acting as hosts in this qualifying cycle, Comoros have reason to feel optimistic heading into Wednesday, with the outcome likely to shape the team’s ambition ahead of the final-day meeting with Ghana four days later.

While a trip to Bamako on the final day is never an easy task, Madagascar’s immediate challenge lies against a side that has proved to be a bone in the neck in recent encounters.

Since Barea hosted Comoros on neutral ground at the FNB Stadium in a 2-1 victory during the reverse fixture of the World Cup qualifiers, they have failed to win any of the following three meetings, drawing 1-1 at home before back-to-back 1-0 defeats, including one in the COSAFA Cup in June.

That said, Madagascar enter Wednesday’s encounter with great momentum, following consecutive victories against Central Africa (2-0) and Chad (3-1) in September’s double header to keep hopes of their maiden World Cup appearance alive.

As a result, Corentin Martins’s men have picked up 16 points from five wins, one draw and two defeats, while boasting an impressive attacking output of 14 goals scored and a respectable seven conceded.

Considering Comoros have been both excellent and porous at either end, netting 11 and conceding 10, we might be in for an encounter where both teams find the net.

Comoros World Cup Qualifying - Africa form:

Comoros form (all competitions):

Madagascar World Cup Qualifying - Africa form:

Madagascar form (all competitions):

Team News

Comoros head coach Cusin has named a 24-man squad for the October double header against Madagascar and Ghana, retaining the core of players from the September outings.

Red Star Belgrade’s El Fardou Ben Nabouhane returns to the national setup for the first time this year, having last featured for Les Coelacantes in November 2024’s AFCON qualifiers against Madagascar.

With Warmed Omari ruled out through injury, either Ahmed Soilihi or Kenan Toibibou is expected to partner Kassim M’Dahoma at the heart of defence on Wednesday.

Comoros would once again look to Myziane Maolida in attack, with the Al Kholood forward having scored five of the team’s 11 goals in this campaign, including one in the last outing where he also provided an assist for Youssouf M’Changama’s strike.

Meanwhile, Madagascar head coach Martins has a 24-man squad to choose from, identical to the one used in September, so it would not be surprising to see the same 4-1-4-1 setup deployed in the victory against Chad, with all starters from that game available.

Geordian Dupire was in goal in that encounter, shielded by a back four of Radoniaina Rabemanantsoa, Sandro Tremoulet, Eshan Kari and Morgan Jean Pierre.

Marco Ilaimaharitra sat just in front of the defence in the holding role, while Arnaud Randrianantenaina operated on the right of an advanced midfield four, with El Hadary Raheriniaina on the opposite flank.

Clement Couturier and Rayan Raveloson pulled the strings from central areas, with the latter scoring his fifth goal of the campaign, while Warren Caddy led the line and should enter this contest full of confidence after scoring in consecutive games for Barea.

Comoros possible starting lineup:

Pandor; Bakari, Mdahoma, Soilihi, Abdallah; I Mohamed; R Said, M'Changama, Z Youssouf, Selemani; Maolida

Madagascar possible starting lineup:

Dupire; Rabemanantsoa, Kari, Tremoulet, Jean-Pierre; Ilaimaharitra; A Randrianantenaina, Couturier, Raveloson, Raheriniaina; Caddy

We say: Comoros 1-1 Madagascar

This is a high-stakes affair where both sides have everything to play for, and with their attacking strengths on display throughout the campaign, a tightly contested draw with goals on either side looks the most likely outcome.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.