Libreville, GABON - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's match-winning goal for Gabon against Tunisia in Franceville last night saw the co-hosts top group C at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The 1-0 result was Gabon's third win from as many matches and takes them to nine points, while Tunisia, who had also already qualified for the knockout stage ahead of the last group game, finished second on six points.
Morocco, who beat Niger 1-0 in the other group game played in Libreville at the same time, finished on three points, while Niger failed to pick up a point.
In Franceville, both sides looked determined to win the match and avoid a potential quarterfinal clash with one of the tournament favorites, Ghana. Aubameyang, whose father Pierre captained the Panthers in 1994 and was in the squad two years later when it escaped the group stage for the first time, was set up by Daniel Cousin in the 62nd minute.
The St. Etienne striker, one of the stars of the tournament, carried the ball into the area before beating goalkeeper Rami Jeridi. This took his tally to three for the tournament.
Tunisia, which went into the game knowing it had to win to finish above Gabon, pushed forward in search of goals after falling behind but couldn't find a through a strong Gabonese defense.
Gabon faces the runner-up of group D in Sunday's semifinal in Libreville, while Tunisia takes on the winner of the group in the other semifinal on Sunday - in Franceville.
In the other game in Libreville on Tuesday, Moroccan coach Eric Gerets made numerous changes to his side, which had already been eliminated from the competition.
Although organizers gave away free tickets for the game, only around 1,000 spectators showed up, losing themselves in 40,000-seat Stade de l'Amitie.
They saw a disappointing match in which Morocco dominated but failed to break through until the 79th minute when Younes Belhanda scored.
The biggest cheer of the afternoon erupted when it was announced that Gabon had taken the lead in Franceville.
Earlier, Ivory Coast and Sudan had qualified for the round of the last eight from group B, while co-hosts Equatorial Guinea and Zambia made it out of group A.
The final two quarterfinal places will be determined in Wednesday's group D matches in Franceville and Libreville.
