Equatorial Guinea, Cape Verde and all the surprises of the African Cup of Nations, which reaches its decisive stage

Simultaneously with the Asia Cupwhich is taking place in Qatar, and causing the annoyance of many clubs in Europe, which they grumble due to the absence of some of its main figures, the 34th edition of the African Cup of Nations It will begin its direct elimination phase this Saturday with two matches in the round of 16. The competition being played in the Ivory Coast has seen the two main contenders for the title advance at a steady pace, has prematurely dismissed some selected players with good records and has offered a couple of powerful surprises.

Angolaunexpected winner of group D, and Namibiawho advanced as one of the best third parties, will open the round of 16 in a duel at the Peace Stadium in Bouaké that will find them face to face the two worst-ranked teams in the FIFA ranking among the 16 still in the race: the Namibians, who had never gone beyond the first round in their three previous participations in this competition, occupy 115th place and the Angolans, 117th.

The survival of these two teams is just one of the striking facts of the tournament. Among so many bells, Senegal made sure that no unpleasant surprises crossed, so far, on a path that aims to culminate with the defense of the title which he achieved two years ago in Cameroon and which represented his first consecration in the African Cup.

Con Sadio Mané as an emblem and with world-class figures such as defender Kalidou Koulibaly and midfielder Pape Matar Sarr, the cast that has led the team for nine years Aliou Cisse They took first place in their group with an ideal score (they were the only team that achieved it) thanks to the victories over Gambia, Cameroon and Guinea, in which they scored eight goals and only conceded one.

On Monday at 5 p.m. at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium in Yamoussoukro, the Ivorian capital, los Teranga Lions They will face the local teamwho reached the round of 16 by a small margin after an erratic first phase in which they even lost their coach, the Frenchman Jean-Louis Gasset.

Wednesday, two days after the resounding 4-0 defeat against Equatorial Guinea that had left his team on the verge of elimination, the Ivorian Football Federation announced the dismissal of Gasset “due to insufficient results in accordance with the objectives contract that it had”. When the dismissal had already been completed, the Elephants They achieved qualification thanks to Morocco’s 1-0 victory over Zambia that allowed them to pass as one of the best third parties. On Monday, against Senegal, the team will be led by former midfielder Emerse Faé, coach of the under-23 team.

The other big favorite to keep the crown is Moroccowho faces this competition with a team that maintains the base of the one that achieved the historic fourth place in the Qatar 2022 World Cup and in which goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, wingers Achraf Hakimi and Hakim Ziyech, midfielder Sofyan Amrabat and forward Youssef En-Nesyri stand out. So far, the Maghreb team has lived up to its status as a candidate: it won group F thanks to victories against Tanzania and Zambia, and the draw with the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Los Atlas Lions They will collide on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at the Laurent Pokou Stadium in San Pedro with South Africawho was Mali’s guard in group E. In that match, the Moroccans will not have their coach on the bench, Walid Regragui, who was suspended by the Disciplinary Commission of the African Football Confederation after being involved in an argument with the Congolese captain, Chancel Mbemba, which led to a widespread tangana on the playing field which then continued in the stadium tunnel. Despite the boxing scenes involving several players, none of them were sanctioned.

Whistling softly he reached the round of 16 Nigeriawhich will be measured with Cameroon on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, the most populated city in the Ivory Coast and the economic and financial heart of the country. The Eagleswith the forward Victor Osimhen as franchise-player, finished in second place in group A after beating Guinea-Bissau and Ivory Coast, and drawing with Equatorial Guinea. So far, those led by Portuguese José Peseiro have shown great defensive solidity, but their figures (Ademola Lookman, Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze, in addition to Osimhen) have not yet exploded.

Access to this instance for Cameroonians was much more complicated. A headed goal from defender Christopher Wooh in added time and a subsequent providential intervention by those in charge of the VAR, who instructed the Ethiopian referee Bamlak Tessema Weyesa to annul by a hand a maneuver that had ended with the ball inside the goal of the Indomitable Lionsthe team led by Rigobert Song gave them a 3-2 victory over Gambia on the last date of group C and qualification.

Egyptthe winningest team in the history of the tournament (achieved seven titles), advanced with three draws in zone B. Added to this meager performance was The name of Mohamed Salah, who suffered a hamstring injury in his left leg during the match against Ghana and will not play again unless his team reaches the final. Without his figure, los Pharaohs They will face the Democratic Republic of the Congo Sunday at 5 p.m. in San Pedro.

Also on Sunday, but in Abidjan, one of the pleasant surprises of the contest will be presented, Equatorial Guinea, who finished first and undefeated in a competitive group that they shared with Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau. He Thunderwhose best performance in this tournament was a fourth place in 2015, will face Guineathe best of the four third parties who passed the first round.

Much of the explanation for the good results that the Equatoguinean national team has been achieving in recent years lies in the policy of seducing the children of migrants from that country living in Spain: 16 of the 25 members of the team were born on Spanish soil. Among them, striker Emilio Nsuéwho plays for Intercity in the Iberian third division and who scored five goals in the first round of this African Cup.

Another of the teams that made noise in the group stage was Cape Verde, which won zone B, relegating Egypt, Ghana and Mozambique. In their fourth participation in an African Cup and with a team without renowned figures, the Blue Sharks They will play on Monday at 2 p.m. in Abidjan with Mauritania, which finished third in group D behind Angola and Burkina Faso.

While all these selected teams still aspire to write down their name in the final that will be played on February 11 at the Alassane Ouattara Olympic Stadium in Abidjan, others who arrived in Ivory Coast with the idea of ​​being protagonists will have to follow the actions of the continental competition on television. One of them is Ghana, four-time champion of the tournament: despite having figures such as Iñaki Williams (Athletic Club de Bilbao), Mohammed Kudus (West Ham United) and Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace), the Black Stars They said goodbye after losing to Cape Verde and drawing with Egypt and Mozambique.

Captained by Riyad MahrezAlgeria, champion of this tournament in 2019, saw its dream extinguished very quickly: a defeat against Mauritania on the last date left the team led by Djamel Belmadi, who was dismissed after elimination. Tunisia, which played in five of the last seven World Cups, also finished at the bottom of its zone and said goodbye without having even won a game. His coach, Jalal El Kadriresigned on Wednesday after the 0-0 draw with South Africa that sentenced the Eagles of Carthage.

17.00: Nigeria – Cameroon

14.00: Equatorial Guinea – Guinea

17.00: Egypt – Democratic Republic of the Congo

14.00: Cape Verde – Mauritania

17.00: Senegal – Ivory Coast

14.00: Mali – Burkina Faso

17.00: Morocco – South Africa