In September 2023, the last goals of the AFCON 2023 qualifiers were scored and Nigeria’s star boy, Victor Osimhen, finished at the pinnacle of the 2023 AFCON qualifiers top goal-scorers list.
On 14 January, Osimhen and the Super Eagles will be taking to the pitch to battle for Nigeria's fourth AFCON title.
Other top scorers from the qualifiers will be on display in Africa’s most prestigious football competition.
The following sections are the names AFCON fans are expecting to see after they have dominated the 2023 AFCON qualifiers' top goal-scorers list.
AFCON Qualifiers Top Scorers
Victor Osimhen (Nigeria – 10)
Victor Osimhen is the top scorer in the AFCON qualifiers 2023. The Napoli and Super Eagles striker sits atop the scorers list with ten goals.
Going into the final group game against São Tomé and Príncipe, Osimhen had seven goals.
Osimhen scored his first qualifier goals in the 10-0 demolition of São Tomé and Principe on June 9 2022. Osimhen scored 45% of the Super Eagles goals that evening.
Osimhen got on the act when he opened scores for the Super Eagles with a ninth-minute lead off a Moses Simon cross.
The Serie A Capocannonieri got his second in the 48th minute. He followed it with two more goals in the 65th and 84th minute.
Osimhen scored three more goals in the 2-1 and 3-2 defeat of Sierra Leone.
In the first leg against Sierra Leone, he scored the winning goal and a 19th and 32nd-minute brace in the return leg.
Osimhen bagged a hat trick against São Tomé and Príncipe in a 6-0 demolition job.
Sadio Mané (Senegal – 5)
Like Osimhen, Sadio Mané scored in three AFCON qualifiers. The Senegalese and Al Nasr (Saudi Arabia) forward has five goals to put him joint second on the chart.
He opened his account with a hat trick in their opening group game against Benin Republic on June 4 2023.
The first goal came in the 12th minute via a penalty. Mane doubled his AFCON qualifiers tally in the 22nd minute before completing his hat trick in the 60th minute.
The former Bayern Munich and Liverpool striker got his other two goals against Rwanda in a 0-1 away win at the Stade Abdoulaye-Wade.
He also scored against Mozambique in their 5-1 win.
Youssef Msakni (Tunisia – 5)
Tunisia sailed through to AFCON 2023 with only one loss. The loss came at the hands of Equatorial Guinea. In that loss, Msakni was unavailable.
The Carthage Eagles have the prolific Youssef Msakni to thank, as he contributed five goals to the cause. Tunisia won four games, drew one and lost one to finish top of the table.
The Al Arabi (Qatar) striker scored a brace in their final group game against Botswana. The Carthage Eagles won 3-0.
He also scored a brace in the 4-0 home victory over Equatorial Guinea and one against Libya.
Louis Mafouta (Central African Rep. – 5)
Central African Republic failed to make it through the AFCON qualifiers. In their final game against Ghana, they needed a win to make it to Ivory Coast.
Despite Mafouta giving the away side the lead in the 25th minute, Ghana bounced back to knock them out.
Mafouta scored a brace each in Central African Republic’s 2-0 and 0-3 win over Madagascar.
The 29-year-old Amiens SC striker will be disappointed not to be part of the party in Ivory Coast.
Patson Daka (Zambia – 5)
Leicester City forward Patson Daka has had solid AFCON qualifiers for Zambia. The striker scored two-thirds of Zambia’s goals as they qualified for AFCON 2023 in Ivory Coast.
Zambia finished top of Group H with 13 points (same as second-placed Ivory Coast).
Daka scored five goals in the AFCON qualifiers. Two of his goals came against Ivory Coast, hosts of the 2023 tournament. He scored one in the 90th minute of the 3-1 loss to the West African nation, with the other in the 3-0 win at home.
Daka also scored a brace against Lesotho in Zambia’s 2-0 win then wrapped up his qualifiers with a goal against Comoros in Zambia’s 1 – 1 draw on matchday six of their qualifiers.
Peter Shalulile (Namibia – 4)
Despite playing four games, Peter Shalulile proved to be a lethal striker. In a group that comprised Namibia and Cameroon, he led the Brave Warriors to pick five points from one win, two draws and a loss.
He scored in every AFCON qualifier match for Namibia.
The Mamelodi Sundowns striker got a goal each in the 3-2 loss to Burundi, the 2-1 win over Cameroon and the 1-1 draw at home and away to Burundi and Cameroon.
AFCON Qualifiers Top Scorers – The Top 10
| Name | Country | No of Goals |
| Victor Osimhen | Nigeria | 10 |
| Louis Mafouta | Central Africa Republic | 5 |
| Youssef Msakni | Tunisia | 5 |
| Sadio Mané | Senegal | 5 |
| Patson Daka | Zambia | 5 |
| Dango Ouattara | Burkina Faso | 4 |
| Peter Shalulile | Namibia | 4 |
| Mohamed El Amine Amoura | Algeria | 3 |
| Kamory Doumbia | Mali | 3 |
| Mohammed Kudus | Ghana | 3 |
This article was most recently revised and updated 10 months ago
