Ahead of the World Cup, ESPN’s Ed Dove presented his Power Ranking of Africa’s 10 qualifiers, predicting how each of them will fare in the group stage, and who will go furthest in the competition.

With everyone having played once, how have their performances stacked up against our original list, and what does a revised ranking look like now?

10. Tunisia (Previous position: 10)

An absolutely disastrous opening performance against Sweden – a 5-1 mauling – in a start to the tournament that couldn’t have gone much worse for Tunisia.

The 5-0 friendly loss against Belgium before the competition sent alarm bells ringing, and head coach Sabri Lamouchi parted ways with the national side in the aftermath of their opening Group F rout.

Herve Renard enters the frame with a reputation for working miracles with beleaguered national sides, giving them confidence, and imbuing squads with emotional narratives to squeeze out those extra percentages of improved performance and commitment as his teams go in search of their goals.

His method faces three immediate problems after taking the reins of Tunisia.

One, he doesn’t have time, with only three full days between him landing in Mexico to join the camp and the Carthage Eagles’ second group game against Japan.

Secondly, there’s the quality of his opponents, where both Netherlands and Japan looked dangerous in their 2-2 draw on Sunday.

Finally, there’s the state of the camp Renard is walking into, with animosity towards federation officials, tensions within the team, and confidence at an all-time low after shipping ten in their last two games.

9. South Africa (Previous position: 7)

Clearly not themselves during the opening defeat by Mexico, with Hugo Broos’s unexpected tactical shift to a back three not having the desired effect of making South Africa tougher to break down.

The chemistry between Lyle Foster and Iqraam Rayners was absent, while Broos’s decision to only give Oswin Appollis 13 minutes was baffling in such a fixture.

Nonetheless, South Africa didn’t throw in the towel – even with ten men – to prevent Mexico running away with it, and if there is the significant improvement that’s been projected by the head coach, then they could climb back up these rankings.

8. Ghana (Previous position: 8)

Remaining in eighth place on this list, Ghana got their campaign off to the winning start they needed with a late, late triumph over Panama in Toronto courtesy of Caleb Yirenkyi’s 94th-minute winner.

Credit must go to Carlos Queiroz, who set his team up effectively to neutralise Panama, while his substitutions – notably the introduction of Brandon Thomas-Asante gave the Black Stars fresh dynamism in the second half.

Ghana’s great escape against Panama shows Queiroz needs a rethink

The problem for Ghana is the draw, where they’re unlikely to get any change from England or Croatia over the next two games, with both looking to be on a different level from the Black Stars during their enthralling encounter on Wednesday.

Ghana’s less-than 40 percent of the possession against Panama doesn’t augur well for when they face more technically adroit teams; will three points and a negative goal difference be enough to keep the West Africans among the best eight third-placed teams?

7. Algeria (Previous position: 4)

Falling three spots down from fourth, Algeria ensured a tough outing when up against Argentina and an inspired Lionel Messi.

The two sides traded punches early on, but any hopes of an upset – we’d tipped Les Fennecs to give the reining champions a bloody nose – were soon extinguished by a Messi masterclass.

They remain a talented outfit, and are still capable of reaching the knockouts, although so much needs to improve, with a midfield – Nabil Bentaleb and Hicham Boudaoui – lacking intensity and engagement, and an attack – spearheaded by the impotent Amine Gouiri – that failed to land a glove on Argentina.

Three points against Jordan on Monday are surely imperative.

6. Cape Verde (Previous position: 9)

The darlings of the opening round, Cape Verde have climbed three spots, although they still may appear slightly too low in this list given their outstanding 0-0 draw against Spain in their first ever World Cup game.

Nine times out of ten, however, that match ends with a victory for La Roja, who took 27 shots to Cape Verde’s six, enjoyed almost 75-percent of the possession, had two of their star players unfit, and came up against a superhuman goalkeeping display from Vozinha.

The islanders are well organised and technically sound, but can they summon those same levels of concentration and emotional energy in lower profile games against Saudi Arabia and Uruguay?

Don’t be surprised if the gritty Uruguayans bring them crashing back down to earth on Sunday.

5. DR Congo (Previous position: 5)

We were optimistic about the Leopards heading into their first World Cup in over half a century, and they didn’t disappoint with an encouraging opening showing against Portugal.

A 1-1 draw was an admirable result, and things could have been even more positive for the Leopards had they taken some decent chances.

They may have been without the ball for much of the contest, but Sebastien Desabre has ensured this team remain some flair, flamboyance and attacking intent despite the defensive structure. They’re also unlikely to face a stronger midfield this tournament.

With Colombia and Uzbekistan to come – both of whom must still face Portugal – the DRC are well placed to face their way into the knockouts.

4. Egypt (Previous position: 6)

Climbing two places, Egypt did themselves proud with an opening 1-1 draw against Belgium, with Emam Ashour netting a fine opener to give the Pharaohs hope of a first ever World Cup victory before Mohamed Hany’s own goal ensured the points were shared.

Still, Hossam Hassan’s supporting cast stepped up – Mostafa Zico caught the eye, Hamza Abdelkarim showed some of the qualities that prompted Barcelona to sign him permanently before the tournament in a late cameo – while the much-maligned head coach deserves credit for neutralising Belgium’s star-studded attacking line.

Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush each had their moments, and with two favourable fixtures ahead – Iran and New Zealand – Egypt may never have a better chance of reaching the knockouts.

3. Senegal (Previous position: 2)

There are reasons for optimism and concern for Senegal following their opening 3-1 defeat by France.

On one hand, they still have an excellent, balanced squad, and looked impressive during the early stages against France, where both Nicolas Jackson and (particularly) Ismaïla Sarr ought to have scored during the break.

Similarly, they have the muscle memory of navigating high-profile fixtures and going deep in a competition, it should still serve them well.

However, the Teranga Lions looked worryingly leggy in the second half, with Sadio Mané anonymous, Idrissa Gueye fading in the sun, and Kalidou Koulibaly off the pace in the second half. How will he cope against Erling Haaland?

Things won’t be as tough as France again, but the Norway match suddenly becomes seismic for Senegal.

2. Ivory Coast (Previous position: 3)

Largely outplayed, to be honest, during an opening half against Ecuador, but rode their luck, held their nerve, and ultimately struck a late winner through Amad Diallo.

Emerse Fae’s tactical decisions might be questioned in this one, where his two-man midfield partnership of Seko Fofana and Franck Kessié appeared stretched at times, however, their opener reaffirmed their strength in depth and attacking quality off the bench, while Yan Diomande was mesmerising in wide areas.

The Elephants defeated their closest rivals for second place behind Germany, and knowing they have Curacao to come, it’s hard to see how they mess up a first ever passage to the knockout stages from this point.

1. Morocco (Previous position: 1)

Still top spot in our rankings – and by some distance – Morocco gave a strong account of themselves against Brazil, taking the lead through Ismael Saibari, before being pinned back through an excellent strike through Vinicius Jr.

They probably should have taken maximum points, having spurned a series of big chances during the opening stages, where they enjoyed a dominant spell before the first hydration break interrupted their momentum.

They coped well despite the injuries to Nayed Aguerd and Abde Ezzalzouli, and a centre-back pairing of Issa Diop and Chadi Riad should grow ahead of Yacine Bounou as the tournament wears in.

In Ayyoub Bouaddi, Morocco have found an immediate upgrade to their midfield, helping them realise Mohamed Ouahbi’s ambitions for a front-foot style.

-ESPN