Misery for Yoane Wissa

You really have to sympathize with Yoane Wissa.

In early September he got his wish and secured a move to Newcastle United.

At that time, the striker was also looking forward to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup finals with DR Congo.

They were heavy favorites to top their qualifying group and qualify automatically, which would mean a first-ever World Cup final for DR Congo (and Yoane Wissa).

On Friday, September 5, Yoane Wissa had scored in a 4-1 win over South Sudan. On Tuesday September 9 it was the key match, group leaders DR Congo played their third final group match against nearest rival Senegal. A win for DR Congo and they would be guaranteed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup finals, a draw and they would almost be guaranteed to still finish top and qualify barring a shock result in one of their final two group games.

Crazy scenes in Kinshasa for that match on September 9 against Senegal, with (at least!) 80,000 people crammed into the stadium for that huge group match for qualifying for the World Cup finals, many thousands of fans left out as DR Congo wanted to make sure they made it to those 2026 finals.

In their World Cup qualifying group, only the top six qualify. There are nine groups in the African Qualifiers and apart from the groups at the top of each group, only one other potentially qualifies, with the top four runners-up from the group going into the play-offs and then one of the four advancing to the inter-confederation play-offs to ultimately play for a place in the finals.

A perfect start for DR Congo against Senegal, as Bakambu gave them the lead after 26 minutes. Seven minutes later, Newcastle United’s Yoane Wissa made it 2-0, sparking wild celebrations. However, Papa Gueye gave Senegal hope before half time by making it 2-1. Eight minutes after half-time, Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson equalized.

However, DR Congo was still in control of the group and was still tied at 2-2 when Yoane Wissa was forced off with what turned out to be a serious knee injury. A very rough game and the Newcastle striker faced some poor Senegal challenges.

The clock was ticking down and with just three minutes to go it was a nightmare for Yoane Wissa and his teammates as Pape Matar Sarr grabbed a dramatic late winner for Senegal.

Yoane Wissa was no longer looking forward to his Newcastle United debut (after missing just three Premier League games due to injury in the past three seasons) and DR Congo was certainly heading for the 2026 World Cup finals, top of the group and automatic qualifiers…

Only to suffer a serious injury instead that ruled him out for Newcastle United until at least November, while automatically advancing to the 2026 World Cup final, with DR Congo hanging by a thread.

The last two rounds of the group matches have now been played and this is how the DR Congo group has ended…

Yesterday (Tuesday), DR Congo won their final group match 1-0 against Sudan, but needed Senegal to lose at home to Mauritania, which was never going to happen. Instead, Senegal hammered them 4-0 to secure their place in the 2026 finals. The same day England guaranteed their place.

Misery for Yoane Wissa and so much bad luck over the past five weeks.

There were nine groups in the African qualifying and the nine group winners have qualified for next summer. For Yoane Wissa and DR Congo, their hopes hang by a thread, together with Gabon, Cameroon and Nigeria they are among the four best runners-up in their groups. Those four teams will meet in November to play semi-finals and a final if they advance. The winner of the four African countries will then receive a place in the play-offs between the confederations, where the African country that reaches that far will then have to win more matches to qualify for the 2026 finals.

It’s safe to say that this is now a huge gamble for DR Congo and Yoane Wissa.

We hope Yoane Wissa is fit for Newcastle United and DR Congo in early November, a striker determined to make up for lost time and opportunities.

This is the October 2025 international fixture list for Newcastle United players:

Thursday October 9

England 3 Wales 0

Anthony Gordon with an excellent first half, as did most of his teammates. England took a 3-0 lead after just twenty minutes and as the match progressed they cruised to victory making numerous substitutions. Gordon is the only one of the front six to play the full game, while Dan Burn is an unused sub.

Friday October 10

South Korea 0 Brazil 5

A world-class assist from Bruno Guimaraes saw Estevao score the opener in this friendly. Joelinton remained on the bench for the entire match and Bruno dropped out after 79 minutes.

Sinnyy 4 LUXEMBOURG 0

An excellent team performance with Nick Woltemade in the lead for Germany.

The Newcastle United striker didn’t score himself but led the line so well, with his link-up play and all-round play helping to secure an impressive victory in this World Cup group qualifier.

Sweden 0 Switzerland 2

Anthony Elanga from Newcastle watches from the bench as the must-win group qualifier for the World Cup ended in defeat.

Sweden now has virtually no chance of appearing in the 2026 final.

With three group matches left to play, Sweden is eight points behind Switzerland.

Saturday October 11

Estonia 1 Italy 3

Sandro Tonali officiated this World Cup qualifying match and was named man of the match by the Italian media and Football Italia, which perfectly sums up his brilliant performance…

‘Italy had some strong players tonight, but the Newcastle United man was in a class of his own today. Harking back to the iconic Italian centre-mids of yesteryear, the 25-year-old showed his class tonight.’

Monday October 13

Northern Ireland 0 Germany 1

What a moment for Nick Woltemade to score his first goal for Germany in this World Cup group qualifier. The only goal of the match when the Newcastle United striker reaches the highest point in the 31st minute and heads in (‘slight’ suspicion that it came from his shoulder…). A tough night in Belfast, a real battle, but Germany are now so strong at the top of the group with only two games left to play. Only the group winners automatically qualify for the 2026 final. Nick Woltemade worked a 92-minute shift and only dropped out in the final seconds.

Sweden 0 Kosovo 1

An embarrassing home defeat for Sweden and left bottom of the table with one point after four games and only two games left to play. Anthony Elanga was on the bench for this World Cup qualifier and watched as Sweden trailed 1-0 at half-time, although it could have been 2-0 if Kosovo also hit the post. Elanga was one of three substitutions on the break and he brought Sweden to life late on, with a series of quality crosses, but Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak squandered chance after chance.

Tuesday October 14th

Japan 3 Brazil 2

A brilliant pass from Bruno Guimaraes set up the opening goal, but somehow Brazil lost this friendly after leading 2-0. Bruno was replaced by NUFC teammate Joelinton after 57 minutes as part of a three-way substitution as Brazil led 2–1. A defensive nightmare from those at the back for all three Japanese goals. Joelinton almost rescued a draw in the final seconds but his effort from outside the penalty area saved into the top corner.

Latvia 0 England 5

Anthony Gordon steered England to the 2026 World Cup final, scoring the opening goal in a demolition job that sees England top their group with two games to play. England are the first European team to qualify for the 2026 finals. Kane got the second and third goals before half-time with an own goal and a late goal from Eze completing the scoring. Rashford replaced Gordon with twenty minutes to go and at the same time Stones went off and Dan Burn grabbed another cap.