The 2023 AFCON Round of 16 epic clash between the Super Eagles of Nigeria and the indomitable Lions of Cameroon held yesterday in Abidjan. However, at the time of press, the titanic battle was yet to commence. But there will be enough time to review how much the grass inside the main bowl of the newly built Alassane Quattra Stadium suffered in the course of the feisty contest.
So far, it has been a spectacle never witnessed before in the history of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). Upsets that sent shockwaves across the continent were produced in the course of the group stage matches played from January 13 to January 24. Maybe it was a pleasant surprise to those who are not conversant with the development of football in Africa but the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and South African billionaire, Patrice Motespe saw it coming. In his speech at the tournament’s opening ceremony, he said “This AFCON is going to be the best AFCON in the history of African football.”
Motsepe went on to say “Cote d’Ivoire will show the world the best football players from Africa and the best football players in the world. Soon a nation from the continent will be the champion of the world. The future of Africa is bright, the future of African football is bright.”
The declaration by the CAF president attracted rousing applause from the mammoth crowd, especially when he mentioned Ivorian legends like Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure, Salomon Kalou etc. Interestingly, signs of the ‘best AFCON ever’ manifested immediately after the president’s speech as the opening match of Group A between hosts Cote d’Ivoire and Guinea Bissau lived up to the expectations of many fans of African football. Expectedly, the Elephants edged their less illustrious opponents 2-0 for their first and only victory in the group stage.
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Soon after the opening match of the tournament, the ‘best ever AFCON’ as foreseen by Motsepe began to unfold in earnest as upsets poured in from different directions. Pre-tournament underdogs flexed muscles with the powerhouses leaving most of them with bloody noses in the process. As a matter of fact, CAFOnline captured it succinctly by saying “In addition to the high-quality football that has been on display in Cote d’ Ivoire, the tournament has also been characterised by major upsets, with the playing levels being levelled by the quality of all teams.” This means the ongoing AFCON has further closed the gap between the giants and the hitherto minnows.
Talking about shocking defeats at the 2023 AFCON, it is necessary to highlight some of the results that will remain indelible in the history of the continental showpiece. Meanwhile, my view or understanding of an upset in a football match is not limited to outright victories because at times, a draw can taste like victory. Therefore, the 2-2 draw played between Egypt and Mozambique can be tagged as an upset. In fact, the most successful team in the competition had to rely on a last-minute penalty scored by Mo Salah to escape defeat in the hands of their opponents. Another draw that tasted like an upset was the 1-1 draw between Algeria and Angola. The Desert Foxes, winners in 2019, were favoured to clinch the maximum points but all they could get was a point as the Angola fought to the end.
Then, the upsets proper began with Cape Verde’s stunning 2-1 victory over three champions, the Black Stars of Ghana. Nobody saw that coming but it happened. But before the fans of the Black Stars could finish wailing, lowly-ranked Namibia delivered another upset against the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia. Sadly, the two nations never recovered from the shock of the unexpected losses till they finally exited the tournament.
The second group matches also produced results that were intriguing to say the least. For most football fans, upsets make the game more interesting. So, even as the round didn’t produce many surprising results, DR Congo forcing 2022 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists Morocco to a 1-1 draw was viewed in some quarters as an upset. Morocco are highly favoured to win the championship and they showed intent with a 3-0 drubbing of Tanzania in the opening match of group E. Therefore, it was no mean achievement for the Leopards to hold the Atlas Lions.
However, in place of unexpected results, it rained goals in the second round of group games after Equatorial Guinea subdued Guinea-Bissau 4-2 with ‘senior citizen’ Emilio Nsue scoring the first AFCON hat-trick since 2008. Senegal also followed up on their 3-0 thrashing of the Gambia with another 3-0 thumping of the Indomitable Lions. Then, South Africa recovered from their 0-2 loss to Mali to spank regional rivals Namibia 4-0. It was a whitewash caused by over-celebration by the Namibians who had beaten Tunisia 1-0 for one of the shocking results in the tournament.
Nevertheless, the mother of all upsets happened in the third round of group matches when the hosts suffered their second loss in the most embarrassing manner. Equatorial Guinea thoroughly outclassed the Elephants as they thundered to a convincing 4-0 win in the final group match. It was the heaviest defeat suffered by the Elephants at home. As a matter of fact, the whole nation was thrown into mourning. But it didn’t end there as Mozambique also sent Ghana home after they forced the former champions to a 2-2 draw in the last group match. It was the same scoreline in the fixture between Cape Verde and seven-time champions Egypt. Mauritania also shocked Algeria 1-0 to send them crashing out of the competition.
Therefore, there was so much wailing and gnashing of teeth as the highly pulsating group matches unfolded across match venues. In the end, the men were separated from the boys, leaving us with mouth-watering Round of 16 fixtures which began yesterday. Interestingly, giant killers like Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, Namibia, Angola and Mauritania will have another opportunity to make more history. Going by the way they have played so far, there is nothing to suggest that the ‘minnows’ will be blown away so easily by the powerhouses.
Lest we forget, Angola, for instance, topped group D with seven points as they scored six goals and conceded only three in the group that comprised silver medallists Burkina Faso, two-time winners Algeria and the unpredictable Mauritania. Cape Verde also finished top of Group B unbeaten after the historic 2-1 win over Ghana, then 3-0 humbling of Mauritania and the action-packed 2-2 draw with the Pharaohs of Egypt. They are appearing in the second round for the third time. In the same vein, the National Thunder of Equatorial Guinea topped group A ahead of hosts Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Guinea Bissau.
Indeed, there will be so much to celebrate in the coming days because the tournament is living up to expectations on and off the field. Therefore, we are waiting to see how more giants of African football will be sent home in tears by the giant killers. This is truly the ‘best AFCON ever.’
