SPORTS WORLD

Afcon 2023: Can African heavyweights survive semi-finals?

Ivory Coast kept their Nations Cup hopes alive with a last-minute equaliser against Mali in the quarter-finals, a match the tournament hosts won deep in extra time

After drama aplenty in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, including a 122nd-minute winner and a goalkeeper saving four penalties in a shoot-out, Wednesday’s semi-finals in Ivory Coast have much to live up to.

Three-time champions Nigeria face a South Africa side aiming to win their second title – but a first away from home following their 1996 triumph in Johannesburg – in the first last-four tie (17:00 GMT).

Hosts Ivory Coast have never won the title on home soil – triumphing in Senegal in 1992 and Equatorial Guinea in 2015 – but must overcome unbeaten DR Congo (20:00 GMT) if they are to reach Sunday’s final in Abidjan.

“It’s been a top-level Nations Cup – now let’s hope the semi-finals and final finish it off in style,” Tom Saintfiet, who led The Gambia in the group stage, told BBC Sport Africa.

Both semi-final ties will be broadcast live in the UK, with the first game on BBC Two and the second on BBC Three, while the BBC World Service will provide radio commentary in Africa.

Elephants keen to march on

Ivory Coast have certainly been on a rollercoaster since kicking off the tournament.

After the deep lows of the group stage, when the Elephants squeezed into the knockout rounds as a best third-placed side, can the hosts maintain the extraordinary highs of their knock-out matches since?

According to midfielder Franck Kessie “a ghost cannot be afraid”, and the near-dead Ivorians have shown unbelievable spirit when scoring late equalisers against Senegal and Mali in the last 16 and quarter-finals respectively.

All three Ivorian goals in the knock-outs have come from substitutes.

“We won’t be this lucky all the time, but it’s important to know that those on the bench can also contribute,” said interim coach Emerse Fae, ahead of the Elephants’ return to the Alassane Ouattara Stadium for the first time since their 4-0 mauling by Equatorial Guinea in their final group game.

“During the last games, the motivation from the fans has helped – we hope they will stay with us.”

Fae will be without suspended pair Odilon Kossounou and Oumar Diakite, who were both sent off against Mali – the former after a torrid defensive display, the latter for taking off his shirt following his dramatic 122nd-minute winner.

Brentford forward Yoane Wissa help DR Congo come from behind and beat Guinea 3-1 in the quarter-finals

As two-time champions DR Congo contest their second Nations Cup semi-final this century and a first since losing to the Ivorians in 2015, the Leopards plan to wear black armbands for those recently affected by conflict in the nation.

On the pitch, a clear issue is the concession of penalties in both knockout games so far, against Egypt and Guinea, but the Central Africans can point to their own dead-ball prowess after a hat-trick of set-piece goals against Guinea – netting from a corner, penalty and free-kick.

Remarkably, DR Congo had made it all the way to the quarter-finals after drawing their first four games at the tournament, overcoming Egypt 8-7 on penalties in the last 16.

“Our first victory came at the right time because we’re gaining momentum,” said coach Sebastien Desabre, who has moulded this latest generation of Congolese into a compact unit.

“We may have only won once but remember we have not lost yet.”

Brentford forward Yoane Wissa is the leading scorer for the Leopards in Ivory Coast with two goals, while former Newcastle United defender Chancel Mbemba and ex-West Ham left-back Arthur Masuaku have also found the back of the net.

Can Super Eagles keep soaring?

Ademola Lookman, with three goals and one assist, has been a key man alongside Moses Simon, who created the Atalanta forward’s winner against Angola

Nigeria face South Africa in Bouake in a repeat of the 2000 Nations Cup semi-final, with the Super Eagles beating Bafana Bafana as the countries met for the first time at the tournament.

The West Africans have the upper hand in meetings at Afcon, winning all three encounters – with the most recent of those a quarter-final tie in 2019.

Playing in a record-extending 15th Afcon semi-final, Nigeria have impressed both in attack and in defence, where they have won their past four games without conceding a goal – their best run at a Nations Cup.

With Frank Onyeka winning over his critics to provide a solid platform in central midfield, the likes of Ademola Lookman and Moses Simon have been liberated – with the latter creating the only goal of the quarter-final against Angola for the former, who has scored half of Nigeria’s six goals.

“We’ve got a lot of faith in our defensive structure and in the final third we’re frightening,” defender Semi Ajayi told BBC Sport Africa.

Coach Jose Peseiro has repeatedly said a clean sheet will guarantee a win for his side given their prowess up front, where reigning African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen has impressed with his non-stop running and pressing despite only scoring once.

Former Nigeria international Sunday Oliseh has praised Osimhen’s ‘leadership and hunger’,, external with the latter a key word for a team that – unlike previous Super Eagles sides – looks fully focused.

Will Broos mastermind upset for Bafana Bafana?

While many expected Nigeria to go far, few thought the same about South Africa who have benefitted from the guile of Hugo Broos, who led Cameroon to their unexpected 2017 triumph.

The oldest coach at the tournament, the 71-year-old has relied on the core of South African club Mamelodi Sundowns to take Bafana Bafana into the last four for the first time in 24 years.

Eight players from the Pretoria-based club that won last year’s inaugural African Football League, while also reaching the African Champions League semi-finals, started their quarter-final against Cape Verde.

Ronwen Williams’ penalty heroics against Cape Verde came after he had made a superb save during second-half added time of normal time

“He has taken Sundowns players because he understands those players have experience against different opponents from across the continent – and he realised the synergy and teamwork are important,” former South Africa captain Aaron Mokoena told the BBC.

Broos said their performance against Cape Verde was their worst at the finals so far and, although Bafana Bafana have also achieved four straight clean sheets, he was indebted to captain Ronwen Williams for a crucial last save before keeping out four penalties in the shootout.

In midfield Teboho Mokoena, another Sundowns man, has provided dynamism while Nigeria will need to be wary of experienced forward Themba Zwane who scored twice in the group-stage win against Namibia.

With Broos having fielded an unchanged since the second game, a major concern will be fatigue, with former South Africa midfielder Dean Furman pointing out the “heavy legs” against Cape Verde on Saturday.

Story by BBC sports

Host nation Ivory Coast produced another amazing Africa Cup of Nations escape act as Oumar Diakite’s 122nd-minute winner sent the 10-man Elephants into the semi-finals at heartbroken Mali’s expense.

The hosts played the majority of the game at a numerical disadvantage after Odilon Kossounou’s dismissal for two first-half fouls on Lassine Sinayoko and they fell behind to Nene Dorgeles’ classy curler.

But the Elephants equalised right on 90 minutes through Simon Adingra’s opportunistic finish – and won it with virtually the last kick of extra time when Diakite diverted home Seko Fofana’s shot.

Diakite left the field with mixed emotions, however, as a second yellow card received for removing his shirt in celebration means he will be banned for Wednesday’s semi-final against DR Congo (20:00 GMT).

The final whistle yielded unsavoury scenes as several Mali players surrounded referee Mohamed Adel, remonstrating with the official, and Hamari Traore was shown a red card for taking his protests too far.

t was difficult to see what the Eagles were complaining about, as there appeared little wrong with the goal that sparked wild scenes of celebration at the orange-bathed Stade de la Paix.

A free-kick broke to Fofana on the edge of the area and, as his shot flew through a crowded goalmouth, Diakite, with his back to goal, instinctively stuck out a foot to flick the ball past Mali goalkeeper Djigui Diarra.

The quick thinking by the forward for French club Reims keeps the hosts’ hopes of a third Afcon title alive after a barely-believable route through the competition that has seen them on the brink of elimination on several occasions.

Elephants find yet another escape route

Having come through the group stage by the skin of their teeth despite two defeats – and sacked manager Jean-Louis Gasset mid-tournament in the process – the knockout stages have been just as hair-raising for the hosts.

Under interim boss Emerse Fae, they came from behind, with another late goal, to force extra time and penalties to beat defending champions Senegal in the last 16.

But even that drama was completely eclipsed by Saturday’s events in Bouake.

Fortune had again appeared to be on their side when Kossounou blocked Sikou Niakate’s shot with an outstretched hand in the box but escaped punishment because the Mali man was offside in the build-up.

It took several minutes to clear up the confusion but when play restarted, Kossounou allowed Sinayoko to get the wrong side of him and bundled him over – only for Yahia Fofana to brilliantly save Adama Noss Traore’s spot-kick.

The hosts’ luck seemed to have finally run out when centre-back Kossounou, booked for the penalty incident, received a second yellow card for tripping the same player just before half-time.

However, they defended diligently, restricting Mali to efforts from distance, one of which paid off with just under 20 minutes to go as Dorgeles cut in from the left to find the top corner.

Unbowed, the Elephants responded admirably, Diakite and Wilfried Singo both going close with headers before a Fofana shot ricocheted perfectly for Brighton forward Adingra to stab Ivory Coast level from eight yards.

They continued to fashion the better chances in extra time, with Sebastien Haller heading against the bar before, with time almost up and another shootout looming, Diakite dramatically settled matters.

However, they must do without him against DR Congo in the last four – as well as Serge Aurier and Christian Kouame, who each collected a booking for the second successive game to trigger a one-match ban.

Mali’s jinx against neighbours goes on

Mali will almost certainly have to answer to the African footballing authorities after the disgraceful post-match scenes with the referee but they only have themselves to blame for their exit.

They never really threatened to capitalise on their numerical advantage and sat back nervously even after Dorgeles gave them the lead.

From then on, they only created one real opening of note when the dangerous Dorgeles’ extra-time ball across the box was almost turned into his own net by Nottingham Forest defender Willy Boly.

The Eagles will, of course, look back on the early penalty miss by Hull winger Traore, although it was an excellent save from Fofana, plunging quickly low and at full-strength to his left to keep the ball out.

Mali, who had topped their group unbeaten, had never before lost an Afcon quarter-final, winning all five times they had reached that stage, but were left to reflect on yet another defeat by their West African neighbours.

They have now lost 13 of the past 19 meetings between the countries, including a last-16 Afcon defeat in 2019, and this result, and the manner of it, will be a bitter pill to swallow for Eric Chelle’s side.

Story by BBC sports

Mali vs Ivory Coast ! AFCON 2024

AFCON hosts Ivory Coast pull off another stunning comeback

Hosts Ivory Coast kept up their incredible escape act at the Africa Cup of Nations as they came from behind to beat Mali 2-1 in Saturday’s quarter-final, scoring a last-gasp goal in extra time to book a semi-final with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Oumar Diakite got a touch to Seko Fofana’s strike to win the game for the Ivorians, who played with 10 men for most of the match after Odilon Kossounou was sent off shortly before halftime.

Mali had taken a 71st-minute lead through Nene Dorgeles but the home team, roared on by the crowd at the Stade de la Paix, fought back and equalised through Simon Adingra in the 90th minute to force extra time.

Diakite then scored the winner before being sent off for a second booking by taking his shirt off in celebration. Mali’s Hamari Traore was also shown a red card at the final whistle.

The Ivorians had limped into the knockout stage as one of the four best third placed finishers, despite a 4-0 loss to tiny Equatorial Guinea, but then resurrected their hopes by edging holders Senegal on post-match penalties in the last 16.

FULL-TIME

Nigeria 1-0 Angola

Ademola Lookman is the hero for Nigeria as the Super Eagles reach the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals.

After his double against Cameroon in the last 16, the winger has the West Africans remaining on course for a first title since 2013.

Achraf Hakimi missed a late chance to equalise from the penalty spot as South Africa shocked 10-man Morocco to set up a quarter-final against Cape Verde at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Evidence Makgopa produced a neat finish to score the opener in the 57th minute, surviving a lengthy Video Assistant Referee (VAR) check for offside and putting Bafana Bafana on their way to a surprise victory over the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists.

Hakimi was afforded a golden opportunity to level when Mothobi Mvala was adjudged to have handled Ayoub El Kaabi’s shot, only to fire his 85th minute spot-kick against the crossbar.

Manchester United midfielder Sofyan Amrabat was dismissed in stoppage time before Teboho Mokoena curled a classy free-kick past Bono to confirm the upset in style.

The 1996 champions will now aim to improve upon their quarter-final exit on their most recent appearance at the finals in 2019, when they take on the unbeaten Blue Sharks on Saturday (20:00 GMT) for a place in the last four.

More to follow.

Story by BBC SPORTS.

Mali seal quarterfinal place with 2-1 win over Burkina Faso

Mali profited from quick starts to each half as an own goal from Edmond Tapsoba and a strike by Lassine Sinayoko secured a 2-1 victory over Burkina Faso in an Africa Cup of Nations round-of-16 clash at the Stade Amadou Gon Coulibaly in Korhogo on Tuesday.

Mali scored within three minutes at the start of the match as the unfortunate Tapsoba turned the ball into his own net. Mali caught Burkinabe Faso cold again when they added a second two minutes after the break as Sinayoko netted his third goal of the tournament.

Burkina Faso pulled a goal back when Bertrand Traore slotted a penalty just before the hour-mark, but could not force an equaliser against a Mali side with a well-deserved reputation for a miserly defence, one of the reasons why they are among the tournament favourites.

Mali are seeking their first Africa Cup of Nations title and next face hosts Ivory Coast in a quarterfinal that will be played in Bouake on Saturday.

No team has played more games at the Cup of Nations without lifting the trophy than Mali‘s 55 and Tuesday’s encounter was perhaps another indicator of why they can change that this year.

They are a difficult side to break down with explosive forwards, and while the scoreline may not have been emphatic, they were comfortable winners in the end.

Mali hit the front inside three minutes when Amadou Haidara‘s powerful header rebounded off the post and as Burkina Faso defender Tapsoba tried to clear, he only succeeded in steering the ball into his own net.

If Mali’s start to the first half was fast, their opening to the second period was even quicker as they doubled the score just two minutes after kick-off.

Sinayoko was played into acres of space on the right side of the box by Hamari Traoré and with time to pick his spot, he coolly slipped the ball under goalkeeper Hervé Koffi.

Burkina Faso had the chance to halve the deficit when the ball struck the outstretched arm of Mali defender Kiki Kouyate and referee Ibrahim Mutaz awarded the spot kick following a Video Assistant Referee review. Traore made no mistake from 12-yards.

They pushed forward looking for an equaliser and had the ball in the back of the net through Issoufou Dayo, but he was well-offside and they could not create much of substance in the closing minutes.

Mali booked a quarter-final meeting with hosts Ivory Coast by holding on to beat Burkina Faso at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

An own goal from Edmond Tapsoba gave the Eagles a third-minute lead, and Mali had several chances to add to their advantage before half-time.

Lassine Sinayoko did make it 2-0 early in the second half with a finish through the legs of goalkeeper Herve Koffi, but Bertrand Traore pulled a goal back for the Stallions from the penalty spot just before the hour mark.

Issoufou Dayo thought he had equalised for the Burkinabe in the final minute, but his header from a free-kick was ruled out for offside and Mali saw out eight minutes of added time.

The Eagles have reached the last eight for the first time since 2013, and Eric Chelle’s side will now face the Ivorians on Saturday (17:00 GMT) for a place in the semi-finals.

Story by BBC SPORTS

2023 AFCON: Senegal ace Krepin Diatta blasts corrupt CAF after shock Round 16 exit

Senegal winger Krepin Diatta accused CAF of being “corrupt” after the Terranga Lions were eliminated from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations by hosts Ivory Coast on Monday.

The defending champions lost 5-4 on penalties to the Elephants in their round of 16 clash after drawing 1-1 after extra-time in Yamoussoukro..

Diatta was angry that Senegal were not awarded a penalty early in the second half when Ismaila Sarr went down in a tangle of legs in the Ivory Coast box with defender Odilon Kossounou.

Senegal were leading 1-0 at the time after Habib Diallo’s early goal, but Gabonese referee Pierre Ghislain Atcho did not point to the spot and did not come across to the pitchside monitor to review the footage.

“You have killed us. You are corrupt. Keep your African Cup,” Monaco player said to CAF staff after the match.

“You go to the VAR to give them a penalty, while our guy (Sarr) picks up the ball 40 metres from goal, goes on a run into the box and you don’t want to go to the VAR?

“I’m sorry but that is going too far. I am really sorry but they have killed our competition,” Diatta added.

TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 Round of 16 Matches Revealed

he group stage of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 has concluded, paving the way for thrilling knock-out stage clashes.

Following Wednesday night’s last group phase matches, the stage is set for several highly anticipated Round of 16 clashes.

Defending champions Senegal, who are yet to drop a point, will take on tournament hosts Côte d’Ivoire

Two more African heavyweights, Nigeria and Cameroon will play a thrilling encounter on 27 January.

Morocco, who topped their group after conceding just one goal, will next face South Africa.

After winning Group A undefeated, Equatorial Guinea will aim for another upset against Guinea. First-time knockout stage qualifiers Namibia have a stern test against two-time quarterfinalists Angola.

Despite a quiet group stage performance, Egypt’s status as the most successful TotalEnergies CAF AFCON nation makes them dangerous opponents for DR Congo.

Other intriguing match-ups include Mali vs Burkina Faso and Cape Verde vs Mauritania.

Story by CAF online.com

Tunisia coach Jalel Kadri steps down after Bafana Bafana draw

The Eagles of Carthage needed a win in their third Group E match against South Africa on Wednesday to progress to the last 16 but were ultimately held to a goalless draw.

They ended bottom of their group, having started their campaign with a shock 1-0 defeat to Namibia, before an improved 1-1 draw with leaders Mali.

However, with the pressure to collect all three points against Bafana, the 2004 continental champions again failed to find the back of the net and ultimately succumbed to their worst AFCON showing since 2002.

He joins the coaches of hosts Ivory Coast, Ghana and Algeria to leave their posts on Wednesday.

Kadri announced his decision immediately after the midweek game, telling the media in Korhogo: “This is my decision, which is in my contract.

“My contract included a mandate to reach the semi-finals and, because we haven’t made that, the contract is terminated.”

The 52-year-old, who took over after Tunisia’s 2021 quarter-final exit in Cameroon two years ago, accepted responsibility for their failed campaign.

“The defeat against Namibia in the first match affected us psychologically, and we shouldn’t have lost. We improved against Mali, and against South Africa, but we were not efficient in attack,” he concluded.