hosts and title favorites underdogs looking to cause an...

Hosts and title favorites Underdogs looking to cause an upsetOn January 8, Egypt won the rights

to host the Africa Cup of Nations final tournament as a result of

Cameroun’s incompetence. This has meant even more pressure for the Pharaohs who were already pre-tournament favourites for the trophy. This is due, not only because of their tradition of excellence at AFCON (they are the most successful team with 7 titles), but also for their quality and depth. Following the 2018 World Cup, Egypt parted company with Argentine Hector Cuper and named Javier Aguirre as their manager. The Mexican has relied heavily on the experienced Europe-based players, changing

the philosophy of the team by using a more attacking and fluid approach. The results have been excellent. Egypt qualified easily for the final tournament, scoring 16 goals in the qualifications process (the most of all participating teams). They will now be aiming to return win Africa’s biggest footballing prize for the first time since 2010. The 4-2-3-1 which is Aguirre’s preferred formation, paid-off in the qualifiers. It allowed the Pharaohs to exploit the speed & inventiveness of their forwards. Liverpool star, Mohamed Salah is the most recognized figure in the Egyptian team, scoring 4 goals on the way to the AFCON finals. The UEFA Champions League

winner is supported by a very capable trio of Amr Warda, Mahmoud Hassan more commonly known as Trezeguet and Marwan Mohsen. Key members of the defence include Ahmed El Mohamady and Ahmed Hegazi who both play for Championship sides in in England (Mohamady just got promoted to the Premier League with Aston Villa). Another cog in the defensive well for the Pharaohs is Arsenal’s defensive midfielder, Mohamed El-Neny.One notable absentee is the former Stoke and Huddersfield Town winger, Ramadan Sobhi, who has returned to Al Ahly after his failures in England.

T he Warriors qualified for AFCON via a 2-0 win against Congo in the last day of the qualifying round. They

finished first in qualifying ahead of the highly favoured DR Congo side.The team will now aim now to get out of the pool stages for the first time in their history, as they have made significant progress under coach Sunday Chidzambwa.Under his tutelage, the team has been transformed into a tough side capable of coping with pressure. This was shown in the fact that they only conceded 4 goals in the qualifying rounds.

Zimbabwe will come to Egypt with togetherness as their main asset given that many of the current crop of players have been together since featuring in the Under-17 squad. They are rank outsides in Group A which features the powerhouses of Egypt and DR Congo. However, this tag of “underdog” is one that they will relish as they look to cause a major upset in a manner like what Ajax had done in the just-concluded UEFA Champions League season.Most of their players play in the South African Premier League. However, key for them would be Nottingham Forest’s right

back Tendayi Darinkwa, Club Brugges’ central midfielder Marvelous Nakamba and of course Anderlecht’s left winger Knowledge Musona, the team’s captain and top scorer.As is common with African football, the Warriors have had their fair share of issues in the build-up to the tournament. Players like Willard Katsande (Kaizer Chiefs midfielder), Cuthbert Malajila (Mamelodi Sundowns forward), Nyasha Mushekwi (Dalian Yifang forward) and Mathew Rusike (Supersport United forward) have been omitted for leading a protest against the non-payment of bonuses earlier this year.

QUALIFICATION RESULTSDATE TEAM SCORE

11/06/2017 TUNISIA – EGYPT 1-008/09/2018 EGYPT – NIGER 6-012/10/2018 EGYPT – ESWATINI 4-116/10/2018 ESWATINI – EGYPT 0-216/11/2018 EGYPT – TUNISIA 3-223/03/2019 NIGER – EGYPT 1-1


11/07/2017 ZIMBABWE – LIBERIA 3-009/09/2018 CONGO – ZIMBABWE 1-113/10/2018 DR CONGO – ZIMBABWE 1-216/10/2018 ZIMBABWE – DR CONGO 1-118/11/2018 LIBERIA – ZIMBABWE 1-024/03/2019 ZIMBABWE – CONGO 2-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND 1957 CHAMPIONS 1959 CHAMPIONS 1962 RUNNERS-UP 1963 THIRD PLACE 1965 - 1968 - 1970 THIRD PLACE 1972 - 1974 THIRD PLACE 1976 FOURTH PLACE 1978 - 1980 FOURTH PLACE 1982 - 1984 FOURTH PLACE 1986 CHAMPIONS 1988 GROUP STAGE 1990 GROUP STAGE 1992 GROUP STAGE 1994 QUARTER-FINALS 1996 QUARTER-FINALS 1998 CHAMPIONS 2000 QUARTER-FINALS 2002 QUARTER-FINALS 2004 GROUP STAGE 2006 CHAMPIONS 2008 CHAMPIONS 2010 CHAMPIONS 2012 - 2013 - 2015 - 2017 RUNNERS-UP

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 -2004 GROUP STAGE2006 GROUP STAGE2008 -2010 -2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 GROUP STAGE

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP J)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 TUNISIA 6 5 0 1 12 4 +8 152 EGYPT 6 4 1 1 16 5 +11 133 NIGER 6 1 2 3 4 11 −7 54 ESWATINI 6 0 1 5 2 14 −12 1

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP G)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 ZIMBABWE 6 3 2 1 9 4 +5 112 DR CONGO 6 2 3 1 8 6 +2 93 LIBERIA 6 2 1 3 5 9 −4 74 CONGO 6 1 2 3 7 10 −3 5

Mohamed SalahA Champions League winner and joint-top scorer in the recently concluded English Premier League season, the Liverpool forward will be the jewel in the Pharaohs’ crown at AFCON. The former AS Roma will bring speed, technique, a great work ethos and razor-sharp finishing to the tourney. He has delivered an amazing tally of 39 goals in 62 appearances for the national team.

Knowledge MusonaThe Warriors captain is the most recognizable football star in Zimbabwe since the days of Peter Ndlovu. Musona has played professionally in Europe since 2011, when he was transferred to German side Hoffenheim. He has made a few moves since then and currently plies his trade at Belgian giants, Anderlecht. Musona has scored 22 times for the national team.

Javier AguirreA former Mexican international, the 60-year-old took over Egypt in August 2018, in his first sojourn in Africa. Aguirre has coached in the Spanish La Liga in addition to managing the Mexican national team; El Tri twice. He won the CONCACAF Gold Cup (the North American equivalent of AFCON) in 2009 and led the side to the final of Copa America in 2001.He has also coached the Japanese national team.

Sunday ChidzambwaIn July 2017, the 67-year old manager returned for a third spell as the national team’s manager. Chidzambwa lead the Warriors to AFCON for the first time ever in 2004. Outside the national team, he has spent most of his coaching days in the South African football scene. He was banned by FIFA in 2012 for match fixing but was reduced to 5 years on appeal.

ONE TO WATCH ONE TO WATCHCOACH COACH

Three of the Pharaohs’ previous AFCON titles have been won on home soil. This means that anything short of finishing as winners of AFCON 2019 will not go down well with the country’s fanatical football supporters and the media.The road up until the quarterfinals looks straight forward. If they win Group A, they get to face one of the third-placed teams from Groups C/D/E. From there on, the road to the final becomes tougher.However, as hosts, the team can be sure of amazing support from some of the most colourful football fans in world football

Zimbabwe have never managed to qualify for the knock-out stages of AFCON, they have managed to win only once in the finals itself.The game against Uganda may be a very good opportunity for that to be rectified.

TARGET TARGET

EGYPT A

SQUAD LISTPLAYER AGE CAPS GOALS CLUB

GOALKEEPERS

AHMED EL SHENAWY 28 30 0 PYRAMIDS

MOHAMED EL SHENAWY 30 9 0 AL AHLY

MAHMOUD GENESH 32 1 0 ZAMALEK

DEFENDERS

AHMED EL MOHAMADY 31 87 3 ASTON VILLA

AHMED HEGAZI 28 51 2 WEST BROMWICH ALBION

OMAR GABER 27 23 0 PYRAMIDS

AYMAN ASHRAF 28 9 2 AL AHLY

BAHER EL MOHAMADY 22 5 1 ISMAILY

MAHMOUD ALAA 28 3 0 ZAMALEK

AHMED AYMAN MANSOUR 25 2 0 PYRAMIDS

MAHMOUD HAMDY 24 1 0 ZAMALEK

MAHMOUD HAMDY 24 1 0 ZAMALEK

MIDFIELDERS

MOHAMED EL NENY 26 71 6 ARSENAL

ABDALLAH EL SAID 33 41 6 PYRAMIDS

MAHMOUD HASSAN TRÉZÉGUET 24 35 5 KASIMPAŞA

TAREK HAMED 30 32 0 ZAMALEK

AMR WARDA 25 26 1 ATROMITOS

WALID SOLIMAN 34 23 1 AL AHLY

ALI GHAZAL 27 8 0 FEIRENSE

NABIL EMAD 23 2 0 PYRAMIDS

FORWARDS

MOHAMED SALAH 26 62 39 LIVERPOOL

MARWAN MOHSEN 30 29 6 AL AHLY

AHMED HASSAN KOUKA 26 20 5 OLYMPIACOS

AHMED ALI 33 7 4 AL MOKAWLOON AL ARAB

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NOTE: You can note the players changes due to injuries or quicker rehabilitation, that will occur before or during the competition.


GOALKEEPERS

GEORGE CHIGOVA 28 30 0 POLOKWANE CITY

EDMORE SIBANDA 33 13 0 WITBANK SPURS

ELVIS CHIPEZEZE 29 1 0 BAROKA

DEFENDERS

TEENAGE HADEBE 23 19 4 KAIZER CHIEFS

RONALD PFUMBIDZAI 24 14 2 BLOEMFONTEIN CELTIC

ALEC MUDIMU 24 11 0 CEFN DRUIDS

DIVINE LUNGA 24 8 0 LAMONTVILLE G. ARROWS

TENDAYI DARIKWA 27 7 0 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

JIMMY DZINGAI 28 4 0 POWER DYNAMOS

MIDFIELDERS

DANNY PHIRI 29 38 2 LAMONTVILLE G. ARROWS

KNOWLEDGE MUSONA 28 36 22 ANDERLECHT

KHAMA BILLIAT 28 36 13 KAIZER CHIEFS

OVIDY KARURU 30 34 7 AMAZULU

TALENT CHAWAPIWA 27 25 4 BAROKA

KUDAKWASHE MAHACHI 25 25 3 ORLANDO PIRATES

MARVELOUS NAKAMBA 25 16 0 CLUB BRUGGE

TAFADZWA RUSIKE 30 15 1 ZANACO

TAFADZWA KUTINYU 24 14 0 AZAM

MARSHALL MUNETSI 22 11 0 ORLANDO PIRATES

THABANI KAMUSOKO 31 10 0 YOUNG AFRICANS

FORWARDS

NYASHA MUSHEKWI 31 17 6 DALIAN YIFANG

KNOX MUTIZWA 25 15 5 LAMONTVILLE G. ARROWS

TINO KADEWERE 23 13 2 LE HAVRE

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BETBIGA ODDSGroup Winners 1.35

Top 3 1.95Winners 4.95



21|06|1904 Africa Cup of Nations 21|06|19Africa Cup of Nations 05

ZIMBABWE A18+18+

The Sleeping Giants look to rise againSolid but inexperienced Cranes will be a darkhorse to watch One of Africa’s traditional “big

teams” DR Congo has been a staple at AFCON for many years.

The Leopards as they are known have been at 14 editions of the tournament where it has won the tournament twice (1968 & 1974) and has finished in 3rd place twice as well.The team’s fortunes have been on the rise given the influx of many Europe-based players and the tactical know-how of coach Jean-Florent IbengéThe rollcall of players which the 51-year-old can call upon is quite impressive foe a team on the African continent.

Arthur Masuaku (West Ham), Marcel Tisserand (Wolfsburg), Chancel Mbemba (FC Porto), Gianneli Imbula (Rayo Vallecano), captain Youssouf Mulumbu (Kilmarnock), Paul-Jose M’Poku (Standard Liege), Yannick Bolasie (Anderlecht winger) and Cedric Bakambu (Beijing Guoan striker) are just some of them.The manager will be charged with leading the war-torn but soccer-mad nation to its first

continental title in 45 years. The team will miss the services of record goalscorer, 33-year old striker Dieumerci Mbokani due to injury in addition to Antalyspor

defender, Fabrice N’ Sakala. Coach, Ibenge has overlooked the England-

based pair of Neeskens Kebano (Fulham) and Benik Afobe (Stoke) due to poor form in the just concluded season.

For a second time in a row, Uganda will be present at AFCON. This time around, the Cranes look more

mature.Like Zimbabwe, the Ugandans are yet to earn a win during the tournament proper. They easily won their group in the qualifiers beating the likes of Tanzania, and the won the group, losing only in their final game at Tanzania.French manager, Sébastien Desabre has massively improved the side. They only

conceded 3 goals during in the qualifying process and will need that solidity to take on the giants of Egypt and DR Congo.The team lacks experience but is young and full of vigour. In Denis Onyango, Uganda will have one of the most experienced goalies going to the tournament. Midfielder, Hassan Wasswa, winger Farouk Miya and Emmanuel Okwi are some of the exciting talent the Cranes will

have to call upon.Imposing centre-back Denis Iguma will miss the

tournament due to injury. However, the likes of Godfrey Masumbi and Mawanda Wasswa will provide calmness in defence while in the attack;

Derrick Nsibambi will be counted on to provide

support for top scorer, Okwi.


10/07/2017 DR CONGO – CONGO 3-109/09/2018 LIBERIA – DR CONGO 1-113/10/2018 DR CONGO – ZIMBABWE 1-216/10/2018 ZIMBABWE – DR CONGO 1-118/11/2018 CONGO – DR CONGO 1-124/03/2019 DR CONGO – LIBERIA 1-0


11/07/2017 CAPE VERDE – UGANDA 0-108/09/2018 UGANDA – TANZANIA 0-013/10/2018 UGANDA – LESOTHO 3-016/10/2018 LESOTHO – UGANDA 0-217/11/2018 UGANDA – CAPE VERDE 1-024/03/2019 TANZANIA – UGANDA 3-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 GROUP STAGE1968 CHAMPIONS1970 GROUP STAGE1972 FOURTH PLACE1974 CHAMPIONS1976 GROUP STAGE1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 GROUP STAGE1990 -1992 QUARTER-FINALS1994 QUARTER-FINALS1996 QUARTER-FINALS1998 THIRD PLACE2000 GROUP STAGE2002 QUARTER-FINALS2004 GROUP STAGE2006 QUARTER-FINALS2008 -2010 -2012 -2013 GROUP STAGE2015 THIRD PLACE2017 QUARTER-FINALS

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 FOURTH PLACE1963 -1965 -1968 GROUP STAGE1970 -1972 -1974 GROUP STAGE1976 GROUP STAGE1978 RUNNERS-UP1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 -2004 -2006 -2008 -2010 -2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 GROUP STAGE

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP G)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 ZIMBABWE 6 3 2 1 9 4 +5 112 DR CONGO 6 2 3 1 8 6 +2 93 LIBERIA 6 2 1 3 5 9 −4 74 CONGO 6 1 2 3 7 10 −3 5

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP L)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 UGANDA 6 4 1 1 7 3 +4 132 TANZANIA 6 2 2 2 6 5 +1 83 LESOTHO 6 1 3 2 3 7 −4 64 CAPE VERDE 6 1 2 3 4 5 −1 5

Cédric BakambuBorn in France and raised at the Sochaux football academy, the 28-year old striker “exploded” in 2014 when he moved to Turkish side, Bursaspor. Two years later was transferred to La Liga side, Villarreal where he was an instant hit, scoring 32 goals in three seasons. He moved to the Chinese Premier League in January 2018 to join, Beijing Guoan, who paid €40m for his services.Bakambu has been very prolific for the Leopards since he switched allegiance from France to DR Congo in 2015, scoring 8 goals in 17 matches

Denis OnyangoThe skipper of the “Cranes” is considered as one of the best goalkeepers in Africa. The 34-year-old plays has been playing his football in the South African PSL where he has been the first-choice goalie for Mamelodi Sundowns for the last eight seasons. In this time, he has helped the Brazilians as Sundowns are called to win the league title on four occasions.

Florent IbengeThe 57-year old manager is a member of a select group of African coaches who have held senior jobs outside the continent. By dint of his stay as manager of Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua. One year later he took over one of DR Congo’s biggest clubs; AS Vita and in 2014 he became the national team coach, leading the Leopards into the top 50 on FIFA’s ranking.

Sebastian DesabreThe 43-year old Frenchman was appointed in July 2017. He has worked extensively across Africa, coaching top club sides like Ismaily (Egypt), ASEC Mimosas (Ivory Coast), Esperance du Tunis (Tunisia), JS Saoura (Algeria) and Wydad Casablanca (Morocco).

ONE TO WATCHONE TO WATCH

COACHCOACH

The Leopards will fancy their chances when pitted against the continent’s big names at AFCON 2019. The number of experienced Europe-based stars in the team means that facing the likes of Salah and Egypt will hold little fear for the side.They should get out of the group despite the fact that they were beaten to top spot in the qualifiers by Zimbabwe.Depending on where they finish in Group A, a quarter-final outing would represent a good result for the team.

Uganda have never qualified for the round of 16 or even won a game at the tournament. This is a record they will be eager to correct.However, the odds are stacked against them as they will be up against the might of Egypt, DR Congo and at par with Zimbabwe.They will need all the luck they can get against the Pharaohs but will fancy their chances against Congo and Zimbabwe.

TARGETTARGET SQUAD LISTPLAYER AGE CAPS GOALS CLUB

GOALKEEPERS

LEY MATAMPI 30 35 0 AL-ANSAR

PARFAIT MANDANDA 29 17 0 DINAMO BUCAREST

ANTHONY MOSSI 25 4 0 CHIASSO

DEFENDERS

ISSAMA MPEKO 33 65 1 MAZEMBE

MERVEILLE BOKADI 23 19 1 STANDARD LIÈGE

MARCEL TISSERAND 26 16 0 VFL WOLFSBURG

BEAUDRICK MUSELENGE UNGENDA 29 12 0 1º DE AGOSTO

NGONDA MUZINGA 24 11 0 VITA CLUB

CHRISTIAN LUYINDAMA 25 8 0 GALATASARAY

WILFRED MOKE 31 6 0 ANKARAGUCU

ARTHUR MASUAKU 25 1 0 WEST HAM UNITED

DJUMA SHABANI 26 1 0 VITA CLUB

MIDFIELDERS

TRÉSOR MPUTU 33 49 14 MAZEMBE

CHANCEL MBEMBA 24 46 3 PORTO

YOUSSOUF MULUMBU 32 41 1 KILMARNOCK

JACQUES MAGHOMA 31 21 1 BIRMINGHAM CITY

PAUL-JOSÉ M'POKU 27 12 6 STANDARD LIÈGE

CHADRAC AKOLO 24 4 0 VFB STUTTGART

LUAMBA NGOMA 25 5 0 VITA CLUB

CHADRAC AKOLO 24 4 0 VFB STUTTGART

FORWARDS

YANNICK BOLASIE 30 36 9 ANDERLECHT

JONATHAN BOLINGI 24 22 7 ANTWERP

CÉDRIC BAKAMBU 28 19 8 BEIJING GUOAN

ELIA MESCHAK 22 16 6 MAZEMBE

BRITT ASSOMBALONGA 26 3 0 MIDDLESBROUGH

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GOALKEEPERSDENIS ONYANGO 34 70 0 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

ROBERT ODONGKARA 29 29 0 ADAMA CITY

JAMAL SALIM 24 6 0 AL-HILAL

DEFENDERSGODFREY WALUSIMBI 29 99 3 FREE AGENT

HASSAN WASSWA 31 75 0 FREE AGENT

NICHOLAS WADADA 24 54 1 AZAM

JOSEPH OCHAYA 25 51 2 TP MAZEMBE

ISAAC MULEME 26 37 0 ŽIŽKOV

MURUSHID JUUKO 25 35 1 SIMBA

TIMOTHY AWANY 22 25 0 KCCA

BEVIS MUGABI 24 2 0 YEOVIL TOWN

RONALD MUKIIBI 27 0 0 ÖSTERSUNDS

MIDFIELDERSFAROUK MIYA 21 57 21 GORICA

KHALID AUCHO 25 43 2 CHURCHILL BROTHERS

LUWAGGA KIZITO 25 41 1 SHAKHTER KARAGANDY

TADDEO LWANGA 25 11 0 VIPERS

ALLAN KATEREGGA 25 8 0 MARITZBURG UNITED

MICHEAL AZIRA 31 5 0 MONTREAL IMPACT

FORWARDSEMMANUEL OKWI 26 68 21 SIMBA

DERRICK NSIBAMBI 24 21 7 SMOUHA

ALLAN KYAMBADDE 23 13 0 KCCA

PATRICK KADDU 23 6 1 KCCA

LUMALA ABDU 21 0 0 SYRIANSKA

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21|06|1906 Africa Cup of Nations 21|06|19Africa Cup of Nations 0718+18+

UGANDA A DR CONGO A

A good Cinderella run but not much is expectedSuper Eagles hunt for gloryThrough an impressive, but also

eventful campaign, Madagascar earned for the first time in their

history a place in the Africa Cup of Nations, finishing second in their qualifying group behind powerful Senegal. The “Barea” were not detuned by the incidents at the home match against Senegal on September, in what one fan killed and nearly 40 injured in stampede before the kick-off at Antananarivo Stade Municipal de Mahamasina. Madagascar was the first side to win the qualification, following the home win against Equatorial Guinea on October 16 and they hope that in Egypt they will

surprise again the football world.Madagascar improved radically following the appointment of Nicolas Dupuis. The Frenchman relies mostly in players that are based in his native country. Clermont’s striker and “Bareas” captain Faneva Ima Andriatsima played significant role in the Qualifiers, as he scored 3 goals and his partners in attack, Paulin Voavy of Egyptian Misr Lel Makkasa and Carolus Andriamatsinoro who plays for Al-Adalh in Saudi Arabia are all threats. Crucial player for the

Madagascar defending plan will be the experienced Lyon center back Jeremy Morel, who was born in France, has played in Ligue 1 his entire career, but he chose to represent the birth country of his father.Lack of international experience should be the main problem for

Dupuis, who usually lines-up a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 formation. Though, Madagascar is the Cinderella of the final tournament and their excitement

could be their “X-factor”, in order to produce surprises to their

opponents.

After being absent from the last two editions, Nigeria will want to make up for

it by hoisting its 4th AFCON trophy. The Super Eagles have become firmly established as one of Africa’s elite teams and will be confident of making making a splash in Egypt. Despite the rather shabby outing at the last World Cup in Russia, the Nigerian Football Federation surprisingly chose not to fire German manager, Gernot Rohr

and were rewarded with a relatively painless qualifying process.A good balance of experience and some exciting young talents currently characterize the side and

they will go into the finals quietly confident of making a deep run into

the tournament’s latter stages. The return captain John Obi Mikel would bring calmness and know-how to the team’s midfield.Kenneth Omeruo (Leganes), William Troost-Ekong (Udinese) and Leon

Balogun (Brighton) will form a reasonably dependable core in

central defence. The very impressive Wlfried Ndidi (Leicester City) will act as shield in midfield while Alex Iwobi (Arsenal), Samuel Chukwueze (Villarreal) will provide thrust and intelligence down the flanks.Odion Ighalo (Shanghai Shenhua) was top scorer during the qualifiers in Africa with 7 goals and will lead the line in Egypt. Henry Onyekuru who was instrumental in Galatasaray’s Super Lig title triumph will also have a huge role to play in the attack.


09/06/2017 SUDAN – MADAGASCAR 1-309/09/2018 MADAGASCAR – SENEGAL 2-213/10/2018 EQUATORIAL GUINEA – MADAGASCAR 0-116/10/2018 MADAGASCAR – EQUATORIAL GUINEA 1-018/11/2018 MADAGASCAR – SUDAN 1-323/03/2019 SENEGAL – MADAGASCAR 2-0


10/06/2017 NIGERIA – SOUTH AFRICA 0-208/09/2018 SEYCHELLES – NIGERIA 0-313/10/2018 NIGERIA – LIBYA 4-016/10/2018 LIBYA – NIGERIA 2-317/11/2018 SOUTH AFRICA – NIGERIA 1-122/03/2019 NIGERIA – SEYCHELLES 3-1

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 -2004 -2006 -2008 -2010 -2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 -

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 GROUP STAGE1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 THIRD PLACE1978 THIRD PLACE1980 CHAMPIONS1982 GROUP STAGE1984 RUNNERS-UP1986 -1988 RUNNERS-UP1990 RUNNERS-UP1992 THIRD PLACE1994 CHAMPIONS1996 -1998 -2000 RUNNERS-UP2002 THIRD PLACE2004 THIRD PLACE2006 THIRD PLACE2008 QUARTER-FINALS2010 THIRD PLACE2012 -2013 CHAMPIONS2015 -2017 -

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP A)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 SENEGAL 6 5 1 0 12 2 +10 162 MADAGASCAR 6 3 1 2 8 8 0 103 EQUATORIAL GUINEA 6 2 0 4 5 7 −2 64 SUDAN 6 1 0 5 5 13 −8 3

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP E)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 NIGERIA 6 4 1 1 14 6 +8 132 SOUTH AFRICA 6 3 3 0 11 2 +9 123 LIBYA 6 2 1 3 16 11 +5 74 SEYCHELLES 6 0 1 5 3 25 −22 1

Jeremy MorelThe experienced center half is probably the most recognizable figure of Madagascar. He played nine years for Lorient; in 2011 he was transferred to Marseille and since 2015 is playing for Lyon. He chose to play for father’s origin and he is the only “Barea” that has tasted Champions and Europa League football.

Odion IghaloThe 29-year old striker was the top scorer in the qualifiers for the finals, hitting 7 goals. He is expected to lead the charge for the Super Eagles and will be the focal point for the team’s forward thrust. Following his successful spells in Spain (Granada) and England (Watford), Ighalo moved to China where he has been a major hit at both Chagchun Yatai and current club, Shanghai Shenhua.

Nicolas DupuisThe 51-year old Frenchman is on Madagascar charge since March 2017. He worked in low division clubs in his career, but as Yzeure’s coach he earned a famous Coupe de France victory against Lorient in 2014. Following the qualification to the AFCON, he earned a contract as technical director of French club Fleury.

Gernot RohrThe experienced German spent most of his early coaching years in French football but has become something of an African expert since then. He has had experience coaching the national teams of Gabon, Niger and Burkina Faso as well as Tunisian clubside Etoile Du Sahel. He led the Eagles to the 2018 World Cup and will be under pressure to deliver another AFCON title.He led the Eagles to the 2018 World Cup and will be under pressure to deliver another AFCON title.

ONE TO WATCH

ONE TO WATCH

COACH

COACH

Madagascar is probably the weakest side of this group and it is likely to finish on bottom, due to the lack of experience in this level. Though, the match against Burundi offer to the “Barea” an opportunity to claim their first ever win in the AFCON, that can even send them to the next round.

Nigeria finds itself in a group where it is condemned to win as the opposition is not of the quality being faced by some of the other favourites.The part to the quarterfinals if they do win Group B is fairly straightforward as they will get to face one of the best losers from either Groups A, C or D.


GOALKEEPERS

JEAN DIEU-DONNÉ RANDRIANASOLO 30 10 0 CNAPS SPORT

IBRAHIMA DABO 26 8 0 JS SAINT-PIERROISE

MELVIN ADRIEN 25 2 0 FC MARTIGUES

DEFENDERS

PASCAL RAZAKANANTENAINA 32 17 1 JS SAINT-PIERROISE

GERVAIS RANDRIANARISOA 34 34 0 JS SAINT-PIERROISE

THOMAS FONTAINE 28 8 0 STADE DE REIMS

JÉRÔME MOMBRIS 31 7 0 GRENOBLE

ROMAIN MÉTANIRE 29 4 0 MINNESOTA UNITED

TOAVINA RAMBELOSON 26 3 0 ARRAS FOOTBALL

JÉRÉMY MOREL 35 2 0 LYON

MIDFIELDERS

IBRAHIM AMADA 29 12 4 MC ALGER

AROHASINA ANDRIANARIMANANA 27 11 1 KAIZER CHIEFS

ROMARIO RAKOTOARISOA 25 8 0 FOSA JUNIORS FC

ANICET ANDRIANANTENAINA 29 7 1 LUDOGORETS

MARCO ILAIMAHARITRA 23 6 0 CHARLEROI

DIMITRY CALOIN 29 3 0 LES HERBIERS VF

RAYAN RAVELOSON 22 1 0 TROYES

RAYAN RAVELOSON 22 1 0 TROYES

FORWARDS

PAULIN VOAVY 31 38 8 MISR LEL MAKKASA

FANEVA IMÀ ANDRIATSIMA 35 36 11 CLERMONT FOOT

LALAÏNA NOMENJANAHARY 33 33 2 PARIS FC

CAROLUS ANDRIAMATSINORO 29 25 4 AL-ADALH FC

NJIVA RAKOTOHARIMALALA 26 23 7 SAMUT SAKHON

WILLIAM GROS 27 3 0 VITRÉ

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GOALKEEPERS

IKECHUKWU EZENWA 30 21 0 KATSINA UNITED

FRANCIS UZOHO 20 13 0 ANORTHOSIS FAMAGUSTA

DANIEL AKPEYI 32 10 0 KAIZER CHIEFS

DEFENDERS

KENNETH OMERUO 25 44 0 LEGANÉS

SHEHU ABDULLAHI 26 31 0 BURSASPOR

WILLIAM TROOST-EKONG 25 30 1 UDINESE

LEON BALOGUN 29 27 0 BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION

OLA AINA 22 7 0 TORINO

JAMILU COLLINS 24 7 0 PADERBORN 07

CHIDOZIE AWAZIEM 22 6 1 ÇAYKUR RIZESPOR

MIDFIELDERS

JOHN OBI MIKEL 32 85 6 MIDDLESBROUGH

ALEX IWOBI 23 28 5 ARSENAL

WILFRED NDIDI 22 26 0 LEICESTER CITY

PETER ETEBO 23 25 1 STOKE CITY

MOSES SIMON 23 24 5 LEVANTE

JOHN OGU 31 24 2 HAPOEL BE'ER SHEVA

HENRY ONYEKURU 22 10 2 GALATASARAY

SAMUEL KALU 21 6 1 BORDEAUX

SAMUEL CHUKWUEZE 20 1 0 VILLARREAL

FORWARDS

AHMED MUSA 26 81 17 AL-NASSR

ODION IGHALO 29 27 11 SHANGHAI SHENHUA

VICTOR OSIMHEN 20 3 0 CHARLEROI

PAUL ONUACHU 25 2 1 MIDTJYLLAND

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NIGERIA Β MADAGASCAR Β

The fairytale goes onThe Syli Nationale will look to make waves For the first time ever in AFCON

history, the tiny nation of Burundi will be participating at

the finals.The Swallows surprisingly edged out Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and his Gabon side in the qualifiers and will be brimming with confidence after being placed in a group that except for Nigeria does not look too difficult.They will prove to be tricky opponents as coach Olivier Niyungeko showed himself to be very flexible in his tactics during the

qualifiers. His emphasis on utilizing the team’s attacking strengths meant that the team was one of the better goalscoring sides, netting 11 goals in 6 matches.The 26-year-old striker, Fiston Abdul has emerged as the focal point of the team with 6 goals in the qualifiers. He is set to be partnered by enfante terrible by Saido Berahino who switched allegiances from England to the country of his parents last year.Winger Cedric Amissi, who plays for Al Taawoun in Saudi Arabia,

Gael Bigirimana, the central midfielder at Hibernian, and Christophe Nduwarugira (Uniao Leiria) are also notable figures for the “Swallows”, who will be dedicating their participation in the competition to fallen comrade Faty Papy who slumped and died in April while on duty for his clubside: Malanti Chiefs in Swaziland.

The Guineans have been one of the more understated sides in the history of AFCON

and will be making a return to the competition after missing the last edition. Guinea were unbeaten in the qualifying rounds and shocked everyone by finishing ahead of Cote d’Ivoire.Expectations are high from the fans about what the team can do at the tournament proper. Unfortunately, this has been hit by the news that captain Naby Keita

may not make a full recovery from the injury suffered in the UEFA Champions League semifinals.The National Elephants as the Syli Nationale are known in English have in their ranks some players who can deliver as well. Bordeaux winger, Francois Kamano, was their top scorer during the qualifiers and will present a threat to opponents with his pace and trickery.Napoli defensive midfielder Amadou Diawara, Mady Camara (Olympiacos), defenders Issiaga Sylla

(Toulouse), Simon Falette (Eintracht Frankfurt) and striker Idrissa Sylla (Queens Park Rangers) will be key figures in Guinea’s attempt to go further than the quarter finals.Apart from Keita, they would miss the experienced Sadio Diallo who is also out of the tournament due to injuries.


10/06/2017 BURUNDI – SOUTH SUDAN 3-008/09/2018 GABON – BURUNDI 1-112/10/2018 MALI – BURUNDI 0-016/10/2018 BURUNDI – MALI 1-116/11/2018 SOUTH SUDAN – BURUNDI 2-523/03/2019 BURUNDI – GABON 1-1


10/07/2017 IVORY COAST – GUINEA 2-309/09/2018 GUINEA – CENTRAL AFR. REP. 1-012/10/2018 GUINEA – RWANDA 2-016/10/2018 RWANDA – GUINEA 1-118/11/2018 GUINEA – IVORY COAST 1-124/03/2019 CENTRAL AFR. REP. – GUINEA 0-0


AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 GROUP STAGE1972 -1974 GROUP STAGE1976 RUNNERS-UP1978 -1980 GROUP STAGE1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 GROUP STAGE1996 -1998 GROUP STAGE2000 -2002 -2004 QUARTER-FINALS2006 QUARTER-FINALS2008 QUARTER-FINALS2010 -2012 GROUP STAGE2013 -2015 QUARTER-FINALS2017 -

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP C)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 MALI 6 4 2 0 10 2 +8 142 BURUNDI 6 2 4 0 11 5 +6 103 GABON 6 2 2 2 7 5 +2 84 SOUTH SUDAN 6 0 0 6 2 18 −16 0

QUALIFICATION STANDINGSPos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 GUINEA 6 3 3 0 8 4 +4 122 IVORY COAST 6 3 2 1 12 5 +7 113 CENTRAL AFR. REP. 6 1 3 2 4 8 −4 64 RWANDA 6 0 2 4 5 12 −7 2

Fiston Abdul RazakAlthough he is only 26, Abdul Razak has already played in 10 clubs at Burundi, Rwanda, South Africa, Angola, Iraq and Algeria. He moved to JS Kabilye in 2018 and has had a great time in the Algerian League. He is Burundi’s all-time top scorer.

Naby KeitaShould Keita be fit before the tournament, he will become the undoubted leader of Guinea. The 24-year old midfielder has been impressive in his sojourn in European football. Should this fail, Bordeaux forward, Kamano will have be the one to call upon as he was the team’s top scorer during the qualifiers.

Olivier NiyungekoWidely regarded across the nation as a miracle worker, Niyungeko’s work is made even more remarkable by the fact that his experience is limited to the Burundian league with clubs Lydia Ludic and Flambeau de l’ Est, winning the national title with the latter in 2013, only three years after the club’s creation. In 2016, he was given the chance to coach the national team and has brought almost instant success to the footballing minnows.

Paul PutThe 63-year old Belgian managed had a majority of his coaching life in his native Belgium Lokeren, Lierse and Mouscron until 2006, when he was banned for three years for involvement in a match-fixing scandal.He moved to Africa in 2008 and has majorly managed national teams; Gambia, Burkina Faso, and Kenya. He was appointed by Guinea in early 2018 and guided the National Elephants to the tournament finals with relative ease.

ONE TO WATCHONE TO WATCH COACHCOACH

Playing for the first time in AFCON is good enough but they will like to achieve more than making up the numbers. While the second game against the Nigerians looks like a bridge too far, the Swallows will not be scared of taking on Guinea and Madagascar.They will show little fear against these sides and will very much fancy their chances of making it to the second round as runner-ups

Without the energy of Keita, the team will be overtly reliant on the likes of Diawara and Camara to provide energy and a bit of guile from deep in midfield.With a not-so-bad group to look forward to, the Guineans will fancy their chances of making it to the second round and will take it one game at a time after that.


GOALKEEPERS

MACARTHUR ARAKAZA 23 28 0 SOFAPAKA

JONATHAN NAHIMANA 19 16 0 TP BATA

JUSTIN NDIKUMANA 26 0 0 SOFAPAKA

DEFENDERS

KARIM NIZIGIYIMANA 29 52 0 VIPERSCHRISTOPHE NDUWARU-

GIRA 24 26 4 UNIÃO DA MADEIRA

DAVID NSHIMIRIMANA 26 26 0 MUKURA

FRÉDÉRIC NSABIYUMVA 24 25 0 CHIPPA UNITED

OMAR MOUSSA 21 14 0 SOFAPAKA

OMAR NGANDU 22 6 0 KIGALI

MIDFIELDERS

PIERRE KWIZERA 28 41 3 AL-OROUBA

GAËL DUHAYINDAVYI 29 41 2 MUKURA

CÉDRIC AMISSI 29 39 8 AL-TAAWOUN

SHASIRI NAHIMANA 25 30 2 AL-MUJAZZAL

GAËL BIGIRIMANA 25 6 0 HIBERNIAN

FORWARDS

FISTON ABDUL RAZAK 26 38 17 JS KABYLIE

SELEMANI NDIKUMANA 32 33 12 AL-ADALH

LAUDIT MAVUGO 29 19 5 NAPSA STARS

HUSSEIN SHABANI 28 18 1 ETHIOPIAN COFFEE

SAIDO BERAHINO 25 5 1 STOKE CITY

ENOCK SABUMUKAMA 24 3 0 ZESCO UNITED

ELVIS KAMSOBA 22 0 0 MELBOURNE VICTORY

MOHAMED AMISSI 18 0 0 NAC BREDA

FRANCIS MUSTAFA 23 0 0 GOR MAHIA

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GOALKEEPERS

NABY YATTARA 35 60 0 EXCELSIOR

ALY KEITA 32 4 0 ÖSTERSUND

IBRAHIM KONÉ 29 1 0 PAU

DEFENDERS

ISSIAGA SYLLA 25 43 1 TOULOUSE

FODÉ CAMARA 30 39 0 AJACCIO

BAISSAMA SANKOH 27 18 0 CAEN

OUSMANE SIDIBÉ 34 6 0 BÉZIERS

ERNEST SEKA 31 5 0 NANCY

SIMON FALETTE 27 1 0 EINTRACHT FRANKFURT

JULIAN JEANVIER 27 0 0 BRENTFORD

MIKAEL DYRESTAM 27 0 0 XANTHI

MIDFIELDERS

NABY KEÏTA 24 32 5 LIVERPOOL

BOUBACAR FOFANA 29 19 0 GAZ METAN MEDIAȘ

MADY CAMARA 22 5 0 OLYMPIACOS

AMADOU DIAWARA 21 3 0 NAPOLI

IBRAHIMA CISSÉ 25 2 1 FULHAM

FORWARDS

IBRAHIMA TRAORÉ 31 44 8 MÖNCHENGLADBACH

MOHAMED YATTARA 25 29 10 AUXERRE

FRANÇOIS KAMANO 23 26 5 BORDEAUX

IDRISSA SYLLA 28 26 5 QUEENS PARK RANGERS

JOSÉ KANTÉ 28 6 1 GIMNÀSTIC

SORY KABA 24 5 0 ELCHE

FODÉ KOÏTA 28 0 0 KASIMPAŞA

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GUINEA Β BURUNDI Β

Defence will be key for the Harambee StarsHigh expectations await for an improved generationAfter a 15-year absence, Kenya will

record their sixth at the finals of AFCON. The Harambee Stars were the

great beneficiaries of the ban placed by FIFA on Sierra Leone during the qualifiers.However, the Kenyans had to work for the ticket as they managed to get important victories against Ghana and Ethiopia. This helped them qualify in second place behind the Ghanaians.These victories have provided confidence to the Kenyans, who alongside Tanzania are looked on as outsiders for a second round ticket in Group C. This current generation will be looking to be the first to break the

jinx as Kenya is yet to play a second round game at AFCON despite having been present in 5 of the previous 30 editions.The arrival of Sébastien Migné in the dugout has been a godsend for Kenya. The Frenchman reformed the stars with his main focus as the defence which had been leaking goals before his arrival.Migne approach has been defence-first with an emphasis on blocking the opponent’s route to goal in large numbers. Kenya won all their matches at the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarni

without conceding any goals during the qualifiers. In all 4 matches played, the team only conceded once.This generation of Harambee Stars unlike

older generations has a number of players playing regularly in more developed leagues outside Kenya.Captain Victor Wanyama (Tottenham Hotspur) Eric Joanna Omondi (Brommapojkarna) Johanna Omolo

(Cercle Brugge), Brian Onyango (Maritzburg United), Musa Mohammed (Nkana) and Michael Olunga (Kashiwa Reysol) are some of the players the team will be counting

on to do the business in Egypt.

In the 1980s, Algeria reached the semi-finals of AFCON five times in a row. The fifth participation in 1990 was glorious as they

finally won the trophy for the first time. It was made sweeter by the fact that it was won on home soil.The team has not done much of note since winning in 1990 but with a talented group of players, they will be eager to make their mark on this version of AFCON.The Warriors sailed qualified for the finals as group winners though it wasn’t without issues. Current coach, Djamel Belmadi was brought in to

replace Algeria’s greatest ever-player; Rabah Madjer. This proved to be the correct choice as it created a change in tactics and attitude.Belmadi preferred mostly a 4-3-3 formation

which has helped the team look very solid. It has a good collection of Europe-based professionals to call upon with Riyadh Mahrez (Manchester City), Yacine Brahimi (FC Porto), Adam Ounas (Napoli), and

Sofiane Feghouli (Fenerbahce) amongst the stars.

However, controversy has trailed coach Belmadi’s choices in his final 23-man squad.

The dropping of seasoned foreign based players like Faouzi Ghoulam (Napoli), Nabil

Bentaleb (Schalke), Rachid Ghezzal (Leicester City), Saphir Taider (Montreal Impact), Said Benrahma (Brentford) and Ishak Belfodil (Hoffenheim) has been a hot topic in the media.The coach’s reasons for dropping these players have ranged from lack of match fitness to discipline to tactics. However, certain sections of the media have queried why a player like Islam Slimani (Fenerbache) who hardly played in the just concluded season is in the final 23.This has put additional pressure on the team and expectations are high that the team will have to live up to.


08/09/2018 KENYA – GHANA 1-010/10/2018 ETHIOPIA – KENYA 0-014/10/2018 KENYA – ETHIOPIA 3-023/03/2019 GHANA – KENYA 1-0

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11/06/2017 ALGERIA – TOGO 1-008/09/2018 GAMBIA – ALGERIA 1-112/10/2018 ALGERIA – BENIN 2-016/10/2018 BENIN – ALGERIA 1-018/11/2018 TOGO – ALGERIA 1-422/03/2019 ALGERIA – GAMBIA 1-1

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND 1957 - 1959 - 1962 - 1963 - 1965 - 1968 - 1970 - 1972 GROUP STAGE 1974 - 1976 - 1978 - 1980 - 1982 - 1984 - 1986 - 1988 GROUP STAGE 1990 GROUP STAGE 1992 GROUP STAGE 1994 - 1996 - 1998 - 2000 - 2002 - 2004 GROUP STAGE 2006 - 2008 - 2010 - 2012 - 2013 - 2015 - 2017 -

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 GROUP STAGE1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 RUNNERS-UP1982 FOURTH PLACE1984 THIRD PLACE1986 GROUP STAGE1988 THIRD PLACE1990 CHAMPIONS1992 GROUP STAGE1994 -1996 QUARTER-FINALS1998 GROUP STAGE2000 QUARTER-FINALS2002 GROUP STAGE2004 QUARTER-FINALS2006 -2008 -2010 FOURTH PLACE2012 -2013 GROUP STAGE2015 QUARTER-FINALS2017 GROUP STAGE

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP F)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 GHANA 4 3 0 1 8 1 +7 92 KENYA 4 2 1 1 4 1 +3 73 ETHIOPIA 4 0 1 3 0 10 −10 14 SIERRA LEONE - - - - - - - -

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP D)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 ALGERIA 6 3 2 1 9 4 +5 112 BENIN 6 3 1 2 5 6 −1 103 GAMBIA 6 1 3 2 6 6 0 64 TOGO 6 1 2 3 4 8 −4 5

Victor WanyamaThe 27-year-old defensive midfielder is undoubtedly the biggest footballing name in Kenya presently. Strong on the ground and in the air with an unmissable presence on the field, Wanyama’s star has been on the rise and has seen him move across four different European leagues to becoming a regular in the English Premier League for Tottenham Hotspur. He will be hopeful of leading the team into the next round for the first time in the history of Kenya and should definitely add to the 52 caps and 5 goals already to his name.

Riyadh MahrezHe was a key member of the Leicester team which against all odds won the English Premier League in 2016. He repeated the feat in the just-concluded season with Manchester City.Skillful, quick and intelligent, Mahrez is a gem of a winger and has been brilliant for both club and country. He will be one of the big stars of the tournament in Egypt and will be looking to improve upon his tally of 10 goals in 44 games for the Warriors.

Sébastien Migné The Frenchman is a student of Claude Leroy, one of the most respected coaches in the continent’s footballing history. His playing career was majorly spent in the lower reaches of the French football system.His coaching career has been limited to the African continent with previous work being the Democratic Republic of Congo’s U-20 national team before being appointed as national manager of The Congo. He took over the Harambee Stars’ job in May 2018.

Djamel BelmadiHe was born in France where he spent most of his career as a player before spending some time in England as well. A former international, Belmadi has spent a large part of his coaching career in Qatar, managing Lekhwiya, the Qatari national team.He was hugely successful during his 2 spells at Al-Duhail winning 7 trophies including 3 league titles before being appointed as coach of the Desert Warriors in 2018.


The Kenyans have shown enough during the qualifiers to say that they can be a potential banana skin for anyone who underrates them.Their defensive rigidity and commitment to keeping opponents out will make life difficult for both Senegal and Algeria, the two teams favoured to move on to the next round. A respectable outing where they do not get battered would be the minimum requirement while anything like qualification for the next round would be a huge bonus.

Algeria certainly has the players and the pedigree to do well in this tournament. They are an almost ever-present in the competition having been in attendance in 17 out of the previous 31 editions.They are expected to battle it out with the Teranga Lions of Senegal for the top spot in the group and will be confident of making it to the next round given the quality of opposition.


GOALKEEPERS

PATRICK MATASI 31 22 0 SAINT GEORGE

JOHN OYEMBA 26 0 0 KARIOBANGI SHARKS

FAROUK SHIKALO 22 0 0 BANDARI

DEFENDERS

DAVID OWINO 31 54 2 ZESCO UNITED

MUSA MOHAMMED 28 40 0 NKANA

ABOUD OMAR 26 32 0 SEPSI

ERIC OUMA 22 18 0 VASALUNDS

PHILEMON OTIENO 26 6 0 GOR MAHIA

JOASH ONYANGO 26 4 0 GOR MAHIA

BERNARD OCHIENG 23 2 0 VIHIGA UNITED

JOSEPH OKUMU 22 1 0 REAL MONARCHS

MIDFIELDERS

VICTOR WANYAMA 27 53 6 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

FRANCIS KAHATA 26 34 2 GOR MAHIA

DENNIS ODHIAMBO 34 27 1 SOFAPAKA

JOHANNA OMOLO 29 21 4 CERCLE BRUGGE

ISMAEL ATHUMAN 24 9 0 LAS PALMAS B

WHYVONNE ISUZA 24 8 1 LEOPARDS

FORWARDS

MICHAEL OLUNGA 25 32 14 KASHIWA REYSOL

PAUL WERE 25 32 3 TRIKALA

AYUB TIMBE 26 17 4 BEIJING RENHE

OVELLA OCHIENG 19 17 2 VASALUNDS

MASOUD JUMA 23 8 3 AL-NASR

JOHN AVIRE 22 0 0 SOFAPAKA

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GOALKEEPERS

RAÏS M'BOLHI 33 59 0 AL-ETTIFAQ

AZZEDINE DOUKHA 32 12 0 AL-RAED

ALEXANDRE OUKIDJA 30 1 0 METZ

DEFENDERS

AÏSSA MANDI 27 43 1 BETIS

MEHDI TAHRAT 29 6 0 RC LENS

RAFIK HALLICHE 33 39 3 MOREIRENSE

DJAMEL BENLAMRI 29 2 0 AL-SHABAB

RAMY BENSEBAINI 24 17 2 RENNES

YOUCEF ATAL 23 7 1 NICE

MOHAMED FARES 23 2 0 SPAL

MEHDI ZEFFANE 27 12 0 RENNES

MIDFIELDERS

ADLÈNE GUEDIOURA 33 41 2 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

MOHAMED BENKHEMASSA 25 19 2 USM ALGER

MEHDI ABEID 26 7 1 DIJON

ISMAËL BENNACER 21 8 0 EMPOLI

HICHAM BOUDAOUI 19 1 0 PARADOU AC

SOFIANE FEGHOULI 29 50 11 GALATASARAY

RIYAD MAHREZ 28 44 10 MANCHESTER CITY

YACINE BRAHIMI 29 45 11 PORTO

ADAM OUNAS 22 5 0 NAPOLI

YOUCEF BELAILI 27 3 0 ES TUNIS

FORWARDS

BAGHDAD BOUNEDJAH 27 20 8 AL-SADD

ISLAM SLIMANI 30 59 27 FENERBAHÇE

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ALGERIA C KENYA C

Inexperienced Taifa Stars to make up the numbersNew “Golden Generation” looks to rewrite historyAfter 39 years, Tanzania will appear

in an AFCON tournament for just the 2nd time in its history.

The Stars booked their ticket to Egypt thanks to their 3-0 home triumph against Uganda on the last day of the qualification series.However, Tanzania will face much stronger opponents at the tournament proper and it may be difficult for them to adapt, due to the lack of international experience and exposure.Only Mbwana Samatta who plays for Belgian side Genk, has played at a decent level of European football. A united team,

hardwork and a refusal to give up will be essential ingredients for them if they are to make any impact whatsoever at the AFCON Finals.These qualities are what their manager, Emmanuel Amunike has installed since he became the team’s manager. The Nigerian knows what it is to do well in an AFCON tournament having scored both goals when Nigeria

defeated Zambia in the 1994 final.A very adaptive coach, Amunike has constantly switched between the 3-5-2 and the 4-4-2 formation during the qualifiers. Apart from Samatta, Simon

Msuva (Difaa El Jadidi), Abdi Banda (Baroka), Mao Mkami (Petrojet), and John Bocco (Simba) are some of the key players who will be important to the Taifa Stars’ cause in Egypt.

The “golden generation” of Senegalese football refers to the team that got to the

quarter-finals of 2002 World Cup. The same team had also achieved the nation’s best result in AFCON history; losing to Cameroon on penalties in the final.Kalidou Fadiga, Salif Diao, Issa Diop, Henry Camara, El-Hadj Diouf amongst others formed the core of that team. They may well be surpassed in achievement by the current team

which if lives up to its potential have what it takes to go all the way.The team was disappointing at last year’s World Cup where they went out in the first round. However, the Teranga

Lions were peerless in qualifying for Egypt 2019, recording 16 points from 6

matches and only conceding 2 goals.The quality of the team is currently comparable to that of the Cote d’Ivoire side that won the 2015 edition of AFCON or the star-studded Nigerian team that won in 1994.

Judged by market value, the current crop is valued at €346m. Players like

Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Everton), Cheikhou Kouyate (Crystal Palace), Keita Balde (Inter Milan), M’Baye Niang (Rennes) and UEFA Champions League winner Sadio Mane (Liverpool) are some of the superstars that are included in the squad list.Having players of considerable football quality at his disposal, Coach Aliou Cisse has been able to choose different line-ups, depending on the opponents. The 4-4-2 formation is his preference but during the qualifying series the 43-year old manager also used the 4-3-2-1 and 4-3-3 setups at various times.


10/06/2017 TANZANIA – LESOTHO 1-108/09/2018 UGANDA – TANZANIA 0-013/10/2018 CAPE VERDE - TANZANIA 3-016/10/2018 TANZANIA – CAPE VERDE 2-017/11/2018 LESOTHO – TANZANIA 1-024/03/2019 TANZANIA – UGANDA 3-0


10/06/2017 SENEGAL – EQUATORIAL GUINEA 3-009/09/2018 MADAGASCAR – SENEGAL 2-213/10/2018 SENEGAL – SUDAN 3-016/10/2018 SUDAN – SENEGAL 0-117/11/2018 EQUATORIAL GUINEA – SENEGAL 0-123/03/2019 SENEGAL – MADAGASCAR 2-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 - 1959 - 1962 - 1963 - 1965 - 1968 - 1970 - 1972 - 1974 - 1976 - 1978 - 1980 GROUP STAGE 1982 - 1984 - 1986 - 1988 - 1990 - 1992 - 1994 - 1996 - 1998 - 2000 - 2002 - 2004 - 2006 - 2008 - 2010 - 2012 - 2013 - 2015 - 2017 -

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 - 1959 - 1962 - 1963 - 1965 FOURTH PLACE 1968 GROUP STAGE 1970 - 1972 - 1974 - 1976 - 1978 - 1980 - 1982 - 1984 - 1986 GROUP STAGE 1988 - 1990 FOURTH PLACE 1992 QUARTER-FINALS 1994 QUARTER-FINALS 1996 - 1998 - 2000 QUARTER-FINALS 2002 RUNNERS-UP 2004 QUARTER-FINALS 2006 FOURTH PLACE 2008 GROUP STAGE 2010 - 2012 GROUP STAGE 2013 - 2015 GROUP STAGE 2017 QUARTER-FINALS

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP L)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 UGANDA 6 4 1 1 7 3 +4 132 TANZANIA 6 2 2 2 6 5 +1 83 LESOTHO 6 1 3 2 3 7 −4 64 CAPE VERDE 6 1 2 3 4 5 −1 5

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUPA)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 SENEGAL 6 5 1 0 12 2 +10 162 MADAGASCAR 6 3 1 2 8 8 0 103 EQUATORIAL GUINEA 6 2 0 4 5 7 −2 64 SUDAN 6 1 0 5 5 13 −8 3

Mbwana SamattaThe captain of the side, he is one of the most recognizable figures of the country. He started his career in Simba but transferred to DR Congo powerhouse TP Mazembe, where he won the African Champions League in 2015, and the award for the Best Player in Africa.Since 2016, he has played for Genk in the Belgian Jupiler Liga and has hit 17 goals in 43 games for the Taifa Stars.

Sadio ManeAlthough he did not score in the qualifiers (which is abnormal), the 27-year old Liverpool forward is now a genuine world class star in his own right. His explosive speed, dribbling, strength and deadly finishing mark him out as one of the stars of the tournament. The captain of the side, he has scored 16 goals in 60 matches for the team so far.

Emmanuel AmunikeThe 48-year old manager was a well-travelled professional during his playing days with spells at clubs such as Sporting Lisbon and Barcelona. As a coach, he won the U-17 World Cup with home country, Nigeria.After a spell at Sudanese side, Al Khartoum, he joined Tanzania in March 2018 and has achieved cult hero status by qualifying the team for its first AFCON appearance in 39 years.

Aliou CisseOne of the leaders of the 2002 team, Cisse worked for two years in the U-23 side of Senegal, before he took over the national team in 2015. He guided the Lions of Teranga to the 2018 World Cup, where they narrowly missed the knock-out stage.He succeeded in getting them to qualify for the 2019 edition of AFCON at ease and has been hailed as one of the most forward-thinking coaches coming out of the continent in recent years.

ONE TO WATCH

ONE TO WATCH

COACH

COACH

Tanzania is clearly the weakest side of this pool. Having little in the way of international experience and a pointed lack of quality, it looks grim for the Stars. Pitted against Senegal, Algeria and Kenya, the match against the Harambee Stars on 27th June looks to be their only realistic chance to get a point or good result.

The Lions have a team filled with players playing at decent to very high levels in Europe. As such, expectation among fans is that the team should be able to go all the way to the final and possibly win the trophy.Anything less than a semi-final appearance by this team will be seen as a major disappointment.


GOALKEEPERS

AISHI MANULA 23 29 0 SIMBA

METACHA MNATA 20 0 0 MBAO

ARON KALAMBO 24 0 0 TANZANIA PRISONS

DEFENDERS

KELVIN YONDANI 34 80 0 YOUNG AFRICAN

AGGREY MORRIS 35 48 3 AZAM

GADIEL MICHAEL 22 22 0 YOUNG AFRICANS

HASSAN RAMADHAN 24 7 0 NKANA

ALLY MTONI 26 1 0 LIPULI

MIDFIELDERS

ERASTO NYONI 31 87 5 SIMBA

HIMID MAO 26 49 2 PETROJET

MUDATHIR YAHYA 24 15 0 AZAM

FEISAL SALUM 21 3 0 YOUNG AFRICANS

VICENT PHILIPO 26 0 0 MBAO

FORWARDS

JOHN BOCCO 29 69 16 SIMBA

MBWANA SAMATTA 27 48 17 GENK

SIMON MSUVA 25 53 10 DIFAÂ EL JADIDI

THOMAS ULIMWENGU 25 45 7 JS SAOURA

FRANK DOMAYO 26 38 0 AZAM

FARID MUSSA 23 19 0 TENERIFE B

MOHAMED HUSSEIN 24 11 0 SIMBA

RASHID MANDAWA 25 6 0 BDF XI

YAHYA ZAYD 20 5 0 ISMAILY

ADI YUSSUF 26 0 0 SOLIHULL MOORS

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GOALKEEPERS

ABDOULAYE DIALLO 27 17 0 RENNES

ALFRED GOMIS 25 4 0 SPAL

EDOUARD MENDY 27 2 0 REIMS

DEFENDERS

LAMINE GASSAMA 29 39 0 GÖZTEPE

KALIDOU KOULIBALY 27 32 0 NAPOLI

SALIF SANÉ 28 29 0 SCHALKE 04

SALIOU CISS 29 18 0 VALENCIENNES

MOUSSA WAGUÉ 20 14 1 BARCELONA B

YOUSSOUF SABALY 26 11 0 BORDEAUX

PAPE ABOU CISSÉ 23 3 1 OLYMPIACOS

MIDFIELDERS

IDRISSA GANA GUEYE 29 63 2 EVERTON

CHEIKHOU KOUYATÉ 29 52 2 CRYSTAL PALACE

ALFRED N'DIAYE 29 28 1 MÁLAGA

HENRI SAIVET 28 24 1 BURSASPOR

BADOU NDIAYE 28 20 1 GALATASARAY

KRÉPIN DIATTA 20 2 0 CLUB BRUGGE

SADA THIOUB 24 2 0 NÎMES

FORWARDS

SADIO MANÉ 27 60 16 LIVERPOOL

MOUSSA KONATÉ 26 32 12 AMIENS

KEITA BALDÉ 24 23 4 INTERNAZIONALE

ISMAÏLA SARR 21 21 3 RENNES

M'BAYE NIANG 24 14 4 RENNES

MBAYE DIAGNE 27 4 0 GALATASARAY

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SENEGAL C TANZANIA C


1st matchDAY DATE CODE TIME EVENT 1 X 2 OV. 2,5 UN. 2,5 GG NG

FRI 21/06/19 2005 21:00 EGYPT ZIMBABWE 1.35 4.15 10.25 2.30 1.60 2.90 1.35

SAT 22/06/19 2061 15:30 CONGO DR UGANDA 1.70 3.40 4.75 2.10 1.70 2.00 1.70

SAT 22/06/19 3200 18:00 NIGERIA BURUNDI 1.30 4.20 10.50 2.25 1.60 2.90 1.35

SAT 22/06/19 2719 21:00 GUINEA MADAGASCAR 1.55 3.60 6.00 2.15 1.65 2.20 1.60

SUN 23/06/19 3203 15:30 MOROCCO NAMIBIA 1.45 4.00 7.00 2.00 1.75 2.20 1.60

MON 24/06/19 3204 15:30 IVORY COAST SOUTH AFRICA 1.90 3.20 3.95 2.15 1.65 1.95 1.75

SUN 23/06/19 3202 18:00 SENEGAL TANZANIA 1.35 4.25 9.75 2.10 1.70 2.60 1.45

SUN 23/06/19 3201 21:00 ALGERIA KENYA 1.40 4.05 7.50 2.00 1.75 2.25 1.55

MON 24/06/19 2354 18:00 TUNISIA ANGOLA 1.65 3.35 5.25 2.30 1.60 2.20 1.60

MON 24/06/19 2355 21:00 MALI MAURITANIA 1.75 3.30 4.85 2.30 1.60 2.15 1.65

TUE 25/06/19 2085 18:00 CAMEROON GUINEA-BISSAU 1.60 3.50 5.50 2.15 1.65 2.15 1.65

TUE 25/06/19 2358 21:00 GHANA BENIN 1.60 3.50 5.50 2.20 1.60 2.20 1.60

2nd matchDAY DATE CODE TIME EVENT 1 X 2 OV. 2,5 UN. 2,5 GG NG

WED 26/06/19 - 15:30 NIGERIA GUINEA - - - - - - -

WED 26/06/19 - 18:00 UGANDA ZIMBABWE - - - - - - -

WED 26/06/19 - 21:00 EGYPT CONGO DR - - - - - - -

THU 27/06/19 - 15:30 MADAGASCAR BURUNDI - - - - - - -

THU 27/06/19 - 18:00 SENEGAL ALGERIA - - - - - - -

THU 27/06/19 - 21:00 KENYA TANZANIA - - - - - - -

FRI 28/06/19 - 15:30 TUNISIA MALI - - - - - - -

FRI 28/06/19 - 18:00 MOROCCO CÔTE D'IVOIRE - - - - - - -

FRI 28/06/19 - 21:00 SOUTH AFRICA NAMIBIA - - - - - - -

SAT 29/06/19 - 15:30 MAURITANIA ANGOLA - - - - - - -

SAT 29/06/19 - 18:00 CAMEROON GHANA - - - - - - -

SAT 29/06/19 - 21:00 BENIN GUINEA-BISSAU - - - - - - -

3rd matchDAY DATE CODE TIME EVENT 1 X 2 OV. 2,5 UN. 2,5 GG NG

SUN 30/06/19 - 17:00 MADAGASCAR NIGERIA - - - - - - -

SUN 30/06/19 - 17:00 BURUNDI GUINEA - - - - - - -

SUN 30/06/19 - 20:00 UGANDA EGYPT - - - - - - -

SUN 30/06/19 - 20:00 ZIMBABWE CONGO DR - - - - - - -

MON 01/07/19 - 17:00 SOUTH AFRICA MOROCCO - - - - - - -

MON 01/07/19 - 17:00 NAMIBIA CÔTE D'IVOIRE - - - - - - -

MON 01/07/19 - 20:00 KENYA SENEGAL - - - - - - -

MON 01/07/19 - 20:00 TANZANIA ALGERIA - - - - - - -

TUE 02/07/19 - 17:00 BENIN CAMEROON - - - - - - -

TUE 02/07/19 - 17:00 GUINEA-BISSAU GHANA - - - - - - -

TUE 02/07/19 - 20:00 MAURITANIA TUNISIA - - - - - - -

TUE 02/07/19 - 20:00 ANGOLA MALI - - - - - - -

Matches odds may have changed. Go to www.betbiga.com, where more than 520 odds per game are waiting for you! Every day, look for refreshed odds at Betbga shops. Fill in your magazine and play.

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS WINNERS AND FINALSYEAR HOSTS WINNERS FINAL RESULT

1957 Sudan Egypt Egypt – Ethiopa 4-0

1959 Egypt Egypt Egypt – Sudan 4-0

1962 Ethiopia Ethiopia Ethiopia – Egypt 4-2 (AET.)

1963 Ghana Ghana Ghana – Sudan 3-0

1965 Tunisia Ghana Ghana – Tunisia 3-2 (AET.)

1968 Ethiopia Congo-Kinshasa Congo-Kinshasa – Ghana 1-0

1970 Sudan Sudan Sudan – Ghana 1-0

1972 Cameroon Congo Congo – Mali 3-2

1974 Egypt Zaire Zaire – Zambia 2-0 (REPLAY)

1976 Ethiopia Morocco tournament decided in a final group -

1978 Ghana Ghana Ghana – Uganda 2-0

1980 Nigeria Nigeria Nigeria – Algeria 3-0

1982 Libya Ghana Ghana – Libya 1-1 (7-6 PEN.)

1984 Ivory Coast Cameroon Cameroon – Nigeria 3-1

1986 Egypt Egypt Egypt – Cameroon 0-0 (5-4 PEN.)

1988 Morocco Cameroon Cameroon – Nigeria 1-0

1990 Algeria Algeria Algeria – Nigeria 1-0

1992 Senegal Ivory Coast Ivory Coast – Ghana 0-0 (11-10 PEN.)

1994 Tunisia Nigeria Nigeria – Zambia 2-1

1996 South Africa South Africa South Africa – Tunisia 2-0

1998 Burkina Faso Egypt Egypt – South Africa 2-0

2000 Ghana/ Nigeria Cameroon Cameroon – Nigeria 2-2 (4-3 PEN.)

2002 Mali Cameroon Cameroon – Senegal 0-0 (3-2 PEN.)

2004 Tunisia Tunisia Tunisia – Morocco 2-1

2006 Egypt Egypt Egypt – Ivory Coast 0-0 (4-2 PEN.)

2008 Ghana Egypt Egypt – Cameroon 1-0

2010 Angola Egypt Egypt – Ghana 1-0

2012 Gabon/ Eq. Guinea Zambia Zambia – Ivory Coast 0-0 (8-7 PEN.)

2013 South Africa Nigeria Nigeria – Burkina Faso 1-0

2015 Eq. Guinea Ivory Coast Ivory Coast – Ghana 0-0 (9-8 PEN.)

2017 Gabon Cameroon Cameroon – Egypt 2-1

1957 7 3.501959 8 2.671962 18 4.501963 33 4.131965 31 3.881968 52 3.251970 51 3.191972 53 3.311974 54 3.181976 54 3.001978 38 2.381980 33 2.061982 32 2.001984 39 2.441986 31 1.94

1988 23 1.441990 30 1.881992 34 1.701994 44 2.201996 78 2.691998 93 2.912000 73 2.282002 48 1.502004 88 2.752006 73 2.282008 99 3.092010 71 2.452012 76 2.382013 69 2.162015 68 2.132017 66 2.06

TOP SCORERS BY EDITION

YEAR TOP SCORER GOALS SCORED

1957 Al Diba (Egypt) 51959 El Gohary (Egypt) 31962 Worku (Ethiopia) – Abdel Fattah (Egypt) 31963 El Shazly (Egypt) 6

1965 Acheampong (Ghana) – Kofi (Ghana) – Mangle (Ivory Coast) 3

1968 Pokou (Ivory Coast) 61970 Pokou (Ivory Coast) 81972 Keita (Mali) 51974 Mulamba (Zaire) 91976 Keita (Guinea) 4

1978 Omondi (Uganda) – Afriyie (Ghana) – Odegbami (Nigeria) 3

1980 Labied (Morocco) – Odegbami (Nigeria) 31982 Alhassan (Ghana) 41984 Abouzaid (Egypt) 41986 Milla (Cameroon) 4

1988 Belloumi (Algeria) – Milla (Cameroon) – Traore (Ivory Coast) – Abdelhamid (Egypt) 2

1990 Menad (Algeria) 41992 Yekini (Nigeria) 41994 Yekini (Nigeria) 51996 Bwalya (Zambia) 51998 Hassan (Egypt) – McCarthy (South Africa) 72000 Bartlett (South Africa) 5

2002 Mboma (Cameroon) – Olembe (Cam-eroon) – Aghahowa (Nigeria) 3

2004Mboma (Cameroon) – Kanoute (Mali) – Mokhtari (Morocco) – Okocha (Nigeria) – Dos Santos (Tunisia)

4

2006 Eto’o (Cameroon) 52008 Eto’o (Cameroon) 52010 Nagy (Egypt) 5

2012

Manucho (Angola) – Drogba (Ivory Coast) – Aubameyang (Gabon) – Diabate (Mali) – Kharja (Morocco) – Katongo (Zambia) – Mayuka (Zambia)

3

2013 Wakaso (Ghana) – Emenike (Nigeria) 4

2015Bifouma (Congo) – Mbokani (DR Congo) – Balboa (Eq. Guinea) – Ayew (Ghana) – Akaichi (Tunisia)

3

2017 Kabananga (DR Congo) 3

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS GOALS SCORED

YEAR GOALS SCORED

GOALS/ MATCH YEAR GOALS

SCOREDGOALS/ MATCH

TOP-10 ALL TIME SCORERS

PLAYER GOALS SCORED

ETO’O (CAMEROON) 18

POKOU (IVORY COAST) 14

YEKINI (NIGERIA) 13

EL SHAZLY (EGYPT) 12

MBOMA (CAMEROON) 11

DROGBA (IVORY COAST) 11

HASSAN (EGYPT) 11

TIEHI (IVORY COAST) 10

DOS SANTOS (TUNISIA) 10

BWALYA (ZAMBIA) 10

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS WINNERSTEAM WINNERS

EGYPT 7 (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010) CAMEROON 5 (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017) GHANA 4 (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982) NIGERIA 3 (1980, 1994, 2013) IVORY COAST 2 (1992, 2015) DR CONGO 2 (1968, 1974) ZAMBIA 1 (2012) TUNISIA 1 (2004) SUDAN 1 (1970) ALGERIA 1 (1990) ETHIOPIA 1 (1962) MOROCCO 1 (1976) SOUTH AFRICA 1 (1996) CONGO 1 (1972)

Group Stage / Matches by date / BETBIGA Odds

Can the fading force which is the Bafana Bafana resurrect?South Africa has been one of the

strongest African football teams in the last few decades. Despite staging

the hugely successful 2010 World Cup and having one of the best organized and funded leagues in Africa, the team’s fortunes have continued to decline.They were not at the last AFCON and have been absent from the last two World Cups. They will be itching to make a more favourable impression in Egypt and perhaps add to the one AFCON title they won in 1994.

The current squad is very inexperienced with only about 7 players who have had experience playing at an international tournament.Grouped alongside Nigeria in qualifying, the South Africans struggled to put away the two relative minnows in the group recording 3 wins and 3 draws to finish behind the Nigerians.Stewart Baxter has been coach for

the past two years (his second spell as head coach) but if the rumblings emerging from the press are anything to go by, only a great

performance in Egypt would save his job.Largely made up of players from the local PSL, South African players are not in demand amongst the big European clubs. Captain Thulani Hlatshwayo will

be expected to marshall the defence assisted by the likes of Rivaldo Coetzee

and Buhle Mkhwanazi amongst others.Alongside Hlatshwayo, Thulani Serero is the most experienced player in the team and will be key in midfield while upfront,

Percy Tau will shoulder the goalscoring burden with support from others like

Lebo Mothiba and Keagan Dolly.


10/06/17 NIGERIA – SOUTH AFRICA 0-208/09/18 SOUTH AFRICA – LIBYA 0-013/10/18 SOUTH AFRICA – SEYCHELLES 6-016/10/18 SEYCHELLES – SOUTH AFRICA 0-017/11/18 SOUTH AFRICA – NIGERIA 1-124/03/19 LIBYA – SOUTH AFRICA 1-2

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 CHAMPIONS1998 RUNNERS-UP2000 THIRD PLACE2002 QUARTER-FINALS2004 GROUP STAGE2006 GROUP STAGE2008 GROUP STAGE2010 -2012 -2013 QUARTER-FINALS2015 GROUP STAGE2017 -

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP E)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1. NIGERIA 6 4 1 1 14 6 +8 132. SOUTH AFRICA 6 3 3 0 11 2 +9 123. LIBYA 6 2 1 3 16 11 +5 74. SEYCHELLES 6 0 1 5 3 25 -22 1

Dean FurmanThe 30-year-old midfielder is the brainbox of the team as well as being the most capped with 49. He is one of the few members of the team with extensive exposure to European football; Chelsea, Rangers, Bradford City, Oldham Athletic, Doncaster Rovers amongst others. He will be responsible for dictating the tempo at which the team attacks and defends and will probably be wearing the captain’s armband if Hlatshwayo is unavailable for any reason.

Stuart BaxterBaxter is an old hand in South African football as added to his two spells as Bafana Bafana manager, he has coached Kaizer Chiefs and Supersport United in the PSL.The widely travelled Scotsman has had to rebuild almost from scratch following his return to the coaching job in 2017 with a large contingent of the old squad reaching football menopause at almost the same time; Itumeleng Khune and Siphiwe Tshabalala amongst the most prominent names.

ONE TO WATCHCOACH

Bafana Bafana know that the odds are not stacked in their favour in this group of death. The defence was reasonably okay in qualifiers while the attack constantly flattered to deceive.Baxter will need to get the team firing from the get-go as the first match against Cote Ivoire on the 24th of June could go a long way to deciding their fate.

TARGET SQUAD LISTPLAYER AGE CAPS GOALS CLUB

GOALKEEPERS

DARREN KEET 29 9 0 BIDVEST WITS

RONWEN WILLIAMS 27 5 0 SUPERSPORT UNITED

BRUCE BVUMA 24 0 0 KAIZER CHIEFS

DEFENDERS

THULANI HLATSHWAYO 29 40 4 BIDVEST WITS

DANIEL CARDOSO 30 1 0 KAIZER CHIEFS

RAMAHLWE MPHAHLELE 29 15 0 KAIZER CHIEFS

BUHLE MKHWANAZI 29 15 0 BIDVEST WITS

SIFISO HLANTI 29 13 0 BIDVEST WITS

THAMSANQA MKHIZE 30 6 0 CAPE TOWN CITY

INNOCENT MAELA 26 3 0 ORLANDO PIRATES

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MIDFIELDERS

THULANI SERERO 28 40 2 VITESSE

HLOMPHO KEKANA 34 26 5 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

THEMBA ZWANE 29 16 1 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

TIYANI MABUNDA 31 9 1 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

KAMOHELO MOKOTJO 28 15 0 BRENTFORD

BONGANI ZUNGU 26 24 2 AMIENS SC

DEAN FURMAN 30 49 3 SUPERSPORT UNITED

THEMBINKOSI LORCH 25 4 0 ORLANDO PIRATES

FORWARDS

PERCY TAU 25 18 9 UNION SAINT-GILLOISE

LARS VELDWIJK 27 2 0 SPARTA ROTTERDAM

LEBOHANG MABOE 24 7 3 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

LEBO MOTHIBA 23 7 4 RC STRASBOURG

SIBUSISO VILAKAZI 29 32 5 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

KEAGAN DOLLY 26 13 2 MONTPELLIER

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SOUTH AFRICA DAnother title for The Elephants?One of the most puzzling things about

football on the African continent is that a team as mighty as Ivory Coast

has been crowned AFCON champions just twice in its illustrious history.The 2015 champions did not do so well in 2017 and failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup for the first time in 4 editions.Shorn of the amazing talent pool they have had in the last 2 decades; the Elephants still possess some quality players and will want to show just what they can do at AFCON 2019.The likes of Didier Drogba, the Toure brothers, Kolo and Yaya, the Kalou

brothers, Bonaventure and Salomon, Arouna Kone, Arthur Boka, Emmanuel Eboue amongst others were some of the stars which the team could call upon during the last decade which was undoubtedly the finest in the nation’s history (this included 3 consecutive appearances at the World Cup).The current side may not have as many stars as they used to but they are still a tasty side. Lille OSC winger, Nicolas Pepe is the standout player for the side which can still call upon the likes of Serge Aurier (Tottenham Hotspur), Wilfried Bony (Al Arabi), Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) and

Max Gradel (Toulouse) and Maxwell Cornet (Lyon) amongst others.Coach Ibrahim Kamara’s biggest battle will be the defence as stalwarts like Aurier and Wilfried Kanon did not have the best of seasons for their sides in Europe (Aurier was a bench warmer at Spurs).Manchester United’s Eric Bailly will miss the tournament due to an injury. The defence apart from Aurier and Kanon is very inexperienced with a lot of the players on 10 caps or less. Coach Kamara will have his work cut out for him in moulding a cohesive backline to support the team’s still-good attack.


10/06/17 IVORY COAST – GUINEA 2-309/09/18 RWANDA – IVORY COAST 1-212/10/18 IVORY COAST – CENTRAL AFR. R. 4-016/10/18 CENTRAL AFR. R. – IVORY COAST 0-018/11/18 GUINEA – IVORY COAST 1-123/03/19 IVORY COAST – RWANDA 3-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 THIRD PLACE1968 THIRD PLACE1970 FOURTH PLACE1972 -1974 GROUP STAGE1976 -1978 -1980 GROUP STAGE1982 -1984 GROUP STAGE1986 THIRD PLACE1988 GROUP STAGE1990 GROUP STAGE1992 CHAMPION1994 THIRD PLACE1996 GROUP STAGE1998 QUARTER-FINALS2000 GROUP STAGE2002 GROUP STAGE2004 -2006 RUNNERS-UP2008 FOURTH PLACE2010 QUARTER-FINALS2012 RUNNERS-UP2013 QUARTER-FINALS2015 CHAMPION2017 GROUP STAGE

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP H)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1. GUINEA 6 3 3 0 8 4 +4 122. IVORY COAST 6 3 2 1 12 5 +7 113. CENTRAL AFRICAN REP. 6 1 3 2 4 8 -4 64. RWANDA 6 0 2 4 5 12 -7 2

Nicolas PépéSearing pace, quick feet, great finishing, assisting and amazing dribbling are just some of the qualities the Lille winger is expected to deploy to light up AFCON 2019Capable of playing on either flank, the 24-year-old just had an amazing season leading his unfancied club to the UCL with 22 goals and 11 assists in Ligue 1. Screamers, tap-ins, freekicks, penalties are just some of the goals he has gotten.He has been equally prolific for the Elephants with 4 goals in just 11 appearances.

Ibrahima KamaraThe 53-year-old coach has been working in the national team since 2013 where he started with the U17 team, coached both the U20 and the U23 team in 2015 before being made manager of the senior side in January 2018.

ONE TO WATCHCOACH

One of the favourites for the trophy, the Elephants will be well aware of the need to hit the ground running given that they are in what some have termed the “Group of Death” alongside former champions South Africa and Morocco.If they can solve their defensive issues out, finishing first in the group could put them in good stead for the rest of the tournament as they will get to face a third runner-up from either of groups B, E or F.


GOALKEEPERS

SYLVAIN GBOHOUO 30 40 0 MAZEMBE

BADRA ALI SANGARÉ 33 13 0 FREE STATE STARS

TAPE IRA ELIEZER 21 0 0 SAN PEDRO

DEFENDERS

SERGE AURIER 26 52 1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

MAMADOU BAGAYOKO 29 8 0 RED STAR

WONLO COULIBALY 27 1 0 ASEC MIMOSAS

WILFRIED KANON 25 35 1 ADO DEN HAAG

CHEICK COMARA 25 9 0 WYDAD CASABLANCA

ISMAËL TRAORÉ 32 5 0 ANGERS

SOULEYMAN DOUMBIA 22 0 0 STADE RENNAIS

MIDFIELDERS

FRANCK KESSIÉ 22 28 0 MILAN

SEREY DIÉ 34 44 1 NEUCHÂTEL XAMAX

JEAN-PHILIPPE GBAMIN 23 6 0 MAINZ 05

JEAN MICHAËL SERI 27 23 2 FULHAM

IBRAHIM SANGARÉ 21 2 1 TOULOUSE

VICTORIEN ANGBAN 22 8 0 METZ

FORWARDS

JONATHAN KODJIA 29 17 8 ASTON VILLA

MAX GRADEL 31 65 11 TOULOUSE

NICOLAS PÉPÉ 24 11 4 LILLE

WILFRIED ZAHA 26 9 2 CRYSTAL PALACE

MAXWEL CORNET 22 10 3 LYON

ROGER ASSALÉ 25 14 1 YOUNG BOYS

WILFRIED BONY 30 52 15 AL ARABI

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IVORY COAST D

The Atlas Lions will be looking to roarOne of Africa’s most prestigious

teams, the Moroccans are also rank underachievers as far as

AFCON is concerned. They have only won the tournament once in 1976 despite appearing at the finals 16 times.They have represented Africa four times in the FIFA World Cup (last time in 2018 in Russia) and will want to put a lie to the underachievers tag by lifting the trophy at the home of fierce rivals, Egypt.The French technician Hervé Renard who has had a storied career working in Africa has created has made a very strong team with a large of influx of European-born

players now dominating the team and improving its quality.Only one player from the Botola (Moroccan League) is in the team at the moment with the rest spread across Europe and the Middle East.While the country has always produced flair players, goalscoring has often been a huge problem for it as seen during the qualifiers where they only managed 8 goals in 6 matches.Certain players like Fouad Chafik (Dijon), Abdelilah Hafidi (Raja Casablanca), Zakaria Hadraf (Damac),

Ismail El Haddad (Wydad Casablanca) and Rachid Alioui (Nîmes) will not travel to Egypt.The likes of Roman Saiss (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Hakeem Ziyech and Noussair

Mazraoui (Ajax AFC), Achraf Hakimi (Borussia Dortmund), Amine Harit (Schalke 04) emphasize the quality that the Moroccans possess.

The team has a good mix of youth and experience with old heads like captain

Mehdi Benatia, Mbark Boussoufa, Nordin Amrabat, Younes Belhanda providing the experience for the likes of Ziyech and co

to shine.


10/06/17 CAMEROON – MOROCCO 1-008/09/18 MOROCCO – MALAWI 3-013/10/18 MOROCCO – COMOROS 1-016/10/18 COMOROS – MOROCCO 2-216/11/18 MOROCCO – CAMEROON 2-022/03/19 MALAWI – MOROCCO 0-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 GROUP STAGE1974 -1976 CHAMPIONS1978 GROUP STAGE1980 THIRD PLACE1982 -1984 -1986 FOURTH PLACE1988 FOURTH PLACE1990 -1992 GROUP STAGE1994 -1996 -1998 QUARTER-FINALS2000 GROUP STAGE2002 GROUP STAGE2004 RUNNERS-UP2006 GROUP STAGE2008 GROUP STAGE2010 -2012 GROUP STAGE2013 GROUP STAGE2015 -2017 QUARTER-FINALS

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP B)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1. MOROCCO 6 3 2 1 8 3 +5 112. CAMEROON 6 3 2 1 6 3 +3 113. MALAWI 6 1 2 3 2 6 -4 54. COMOROS 6 1 2 3 5 9 -4 5

Hervé RenardThe 50-year-old manager knows the African football scene like the back of his hand. The Frenchman has been manager for both the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) of Zambia as well as the Elephants of Cote Ivoire.With these two sides, he made history becoming the first coach to win AFCON with two different teams. Before this, he had spent some time coaching in Asia; China and Vietnam.He has also coached in Ligue 1 at Sochaux and Lille OSC with varying results.

ONE TO WATCHCOACH

Their presence in a very tough group alongside Cote Ivoire and South Africa means the Moroccans will need to be at their best to even get out of the group.Their first game on 23rd June against Namibia is a must-win for the Atlas Lions who will also need to sharpen up their goalscoring skills if they are to make the desired impact at the tournament.


GOALKEEPERS

MUNIR MOHAND MOHAMEDI 30 34 0 MÁLAGA

YASSINE BOUNOU 28 15 0 GIRONA

AHMED REDA TAGNAOUTI 23 2 0 WYDAD CASABLANCA

DEFENDERS

MEDHI BENATIA 32 62 2 AL DUHAIL

MANUEL DA COSTA 33 35 1 AL ITTIHAD

NABIL DIRAR 33 39 3 FENERBAHÇE

ROMAIN SAÏSS 29 33 1 WOLVERTHAMPTON

ACHRAF HAKIMI 20 19 1 BORUSSIA DORTMUND

YUNIS ABDELHAMID 31 4 0 REIMS

NOUSSAIR MAZRAOUI 21 4 0 AJAX

MIDFIELDERS

MBARK BOUSSOUFA 34 66 7 AL SHABAB

KARIM EL AHMADI 34 61 1 AL ITTIHAD

YOUNÈS BELHANDA 29 53 5 GALATASARAY

FAYÇAL FAJR 30 31 3 CAEN

HAKIM ZIYECH 26 23 12 AJAX

YOUSSEF AÏT BENNASSER 22 19 0 SAINT-ÉTIENNE

SOFIANE BOUFAL 25 9 0 CELTA

MEHDI BOURABIA 27 3 0 SASSUOLO

FORWARDS

NORDIN AMRABAT 32 52 5 AL NASSR

YOUSSEF EN-NESYRI 22 22 6 LEGANÉS

KHALID BOUTAÏB 32 24 9 ZAMALEK

ABDERRAZAK HAMDALLAH 28 14 6 AL NASSR

OUSSAMA IDRISSI 23 2 0 AZ

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MOROCCO DThe Brave Warriors will need more than BraveryAlready predicted to be the

group’s whipping boys, the Namibian team managing

to get even a single point will register very high on the shock meter if it happens during the finals.Undoubtedly one of the weakest teams in the entire competition, the Namibians qualified for the finals with a negative goal difference of -2. They loved the number 2 during the qualifiers with 2 wins, 2 losses and 2 draws in their 6 encounters.

It is not a team that is particularly noted for its daring style of play as it does not particularly have fast wingers or creative inventive midfielders.

In the provisional squad list released, there are 11 players that participated

in the recently concluded COSAFA Cup (an annual tournament for teams from Southern Africa). The presence of 21-year-old Ryan Nyambe (Blackburn Rovers) was the main talking point as he was eligible to

play for England but instead chose to represent Namibia (a wise choice as

he is not good enough to play for a team like England just yet).28-year-old Manfred Starke who plays for Carl Zeis Jena in the German Bundesliga III (third division) has returned to the national fold for the first time since 2013. Big things will be expected from him as the team is notable for the mediocrity of its players. The experience of the likes of Petrus Shitembi, Ronald Ketjijere, Denzil Hoaseb and Benson Shilongo will be critical if the Brave Warriors will show bravery at Egypt 2019.


10/06/17 GUINEA-BISSAU – NAMIBIA 1-008/09/18 NAMIBIA – ZAMBIA 1-113/10/18 MOZAMBIQUE – NAMIBIA 1-216/10/18 NAMIBIA – MOZAMBIQUE 1-017/11/18 NAMIBIA – GUINEA-BISSAU 0-023/03/19 ZAMBIA – NAMIBIA 4-1

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 GROUP STAGE2000 -2002 -2004 -2006 -2008 GROUP STAGE2010 -2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 -

QUALIFICATION STANDINGSPos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1. GUINEA-BISSAU 6 2 3 1 8 7 +1 92. NAMIBIA 6 2 2 2 5 7 -2 83. MOZAMBIQUE 6 2 2 2 7 7 0 84. ZAMBIA 6 2 1 3 8 7 +1 7

Benson ShilongoThe 27-year-old striker is the active top scorer of the team and currently lines up for Ismaily in the Egyptian league. Before that, he had played for two other Egyptians clubs, Pyramids FC and Smouha. Largely unknown outside the Egyptian football scene, he is a household name in Namibia and on his shoulders will rest the burden of helping the Brave Warriors achieve respectability.

Ricardo MannettiA former player for the team, Mannetti represented the side from 1994 -2003 including at the county’s maiden AFCON finals appearance in 1998. He led the team to their first ever COSAFA Cup win in 2015.

ONE TO WATCHCOACH

Namibia’s main goal will be to avoid three straight losses or limit the scorelines to a respectable minimum. Anything other than this will be considered a bonus as not even the most optimistic fan is expecting qualification from a group that includes three former champions.


GOALKEEPERS

MAXIMILIAN MBAEVA 30 21 0 GOLDEN ARROWS

LOYDT KAZAPUA 30 14 0 MACCABI

RATANDA MBAZUVARA 29 1 0 AFRICAN STARS

DEFENDERS

DENZIL HOASEB 28 57 0 HIHGLANDS PARK

ANANIAS GEBHARDT 30 42 2 BAROKA

RIAAN HANAMUB 24 19 0 JOMO COSMOS

CHARLES HAMBIRA 29 12 2 TURA MAGIC

IVAN KAMBERIPA 25 2 0 AFRICAN STARS

RYAN NYAMBE 21 0 0 BLACHBURN ROVERS

MIDFIELDERS

RONALD KETJIJERE 31 64 2 AFRICAN STARS

PETRUS SHITEMBI 27 61 4 LUSAKA DYNAMOS

WILLY STEPHANUS 27 44 3 LUSAKA DYNAMOS

LARRY HORAEB 27 44 0 TURA MAGIC

ABSALOM IIMBONDI 27 25 2 TIGERS

DYNAMO FREDERICKS 27 21 0 BLACK AFRICA

JOSLIN KAMATUKA 27 7 1 CAPE UMOYA UNITED

MARCEL PAPAMA 23 5 0 AFRICAN STARS

FORWARDS

ITAMUNUA KEIMUINE 26 28 1 DIRE DAWA CITY

DEON HOTTO 28 19 3 BIDVEST WITS FC

PETER SHALULILE 26 27 6 HIGHLANDS PARK

BENSON SHILONGO 27 26 9 ISMAILY SC

MANFRED STARKE 28 3 0 CARL ZEISS JENA

ISASKAR GURIRAB 21 2 2 LIFE FIGHTERS

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BETBIGA ODDSGroup Winners 43

Top 3 66Winners 220

NAMIMBIA D

Hakim ZiyechDynamic, an amazing dribbler and possessing a keen understanding of the game, Ziyech will be one of the stars to watch at AFCON. His displays in the UCL with Ajax have only served to heighten the expectations around him.His importance to the cause of the Atlas Lions is underscored by the fact that currently, he is the highest goalscorer they have with 12 goals in 23 games, an amazing tally for a player who isn’t a striker.

Palancas Negras look to make a splashEagles of Carthage looking for to add one more star For a long time, it was just a dream

for the national team of Angola to participate in a continental or

international tournament. It is only over the last 20 years that things have changed. Their participation in the 2019 edition of AFCON will be their 8th time in the last 13 editions.They surprisingly qualified ahead of Burkina Faso as group winners. The team has shown that it has the potential to do big stuff but things will be vastly different in the finals.Serbian coach, Srdjan Vasiljevic has been the manager for the last two years. He has

made significant changes to the setup with the 4-2-3-1 system being favoured to give them a more “European” playing style. This is a system that makes sense given that a lot of the team’s players play in Europe.Wilson Eduardo, the brother of Inter Milan and Portugal midfielder, Joao Mario, is one of the more outstanding players in the team. Dani Massunguna (Desportivo de Augusto), Mateus Galiano

(Boavista), captain Djalma Campos (Anatalyaspor) are some of the older heads that will be expected to help the team in Egypt.Like Guinea-Bissau, there is a

strong influence of the nation’s colonial masters; Portugal on the

team as a significant number of players play in the Portuguese football league system.Young striker Vá, who plays for Portuguese side, Leixões has been one of the more promising youngsters to

join up in recent years but will miss out due to injuries.

Tunisia has been part of the AFCON Landscape unbroke since 1994. The team has

only won the title once despite having appeared 18 times in 31 appearances.Last summer, they were in Russia for the FIFA World Cup of 2018 but failed to make an impact. In terms of points gained, they were one of the best teams during the qualifying series with 15 points from 6 matches.

Famed French manager, Alain Giresse has been manager since 2018. He has imposed a fearless and forward-looking style since he took over, looking to capitalize on the relative youth of the team.There are several changes from the team who took part at the World Cup last year. Mohamed Amine Ben Amor, Taha Yassine Khenissi, and Anice Badri are three formerly important

players who have been cut off from the side.Wahbi Khazri (St Etienne), Youssef Msakni (Eupen), Ali Maâloul (Al Ahly), Ferjani Sassi (Zamalek), Naïm Sliti (Dijon) are some of the players that the Eagles will be looking to get the job done at the home of their fierce rivals: Egypt.


10/06/17 BURKINA FASO – ANGOLA 3-109/09/18 ANGOLA – BOTSWANA 1-012/10/18 ANGOLA – MAURITANIA 4-116/10/18 MAURITANIA – ANGOLA 1-018/11/18 ANGOLA – BURKINA FASO 2-122/03/19 BOTSWANA – ANGOLA 0-1


12/06/17 TUNISIA – EGYPT 1-009/09/18 ESWATINI – TUNISIA 0-213/10/18 TUNISIA – NIGER 1-016/10/18 NIGER – TUNISIA 1-216/11/18 EGYPT – TUNISIA 3-222/03/19 TUNISIA – ESWATINI 4-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 GROUP STAGE1998 GROUP STAGE2000 -2002 -2004 -2006 GROUP STAGE2008 QUARTER-FINALS2010 QUARTER-FINALS2012 GROUP STAGE2013 GROUP STAGE2015 -2017 -

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 THIRD PLACE1963 GROUP STAGE1965 RUNNERS-UP1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 FOURTH PLACE1980 -1982 GROUP STAGE1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 GROUP STAGE1996 RUNNERS-UP1998 QUARTER-FINALS2000 FOURTH PLACE2002 GROUP STAGE2004 CHAMPIONS2006 QUARTER-FINALS2008 QUARTER-FINALS2010 GROUP STAGE2012 QUARTER-FINALS2013 GROUP STAGE2015 QUARTER-FINALS2017 QUARTER-FINALS

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP I)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 ANGOLA 6 4 0 2 9 6 +3 122 MAURITANIA 6 4 0 2 7 6 +1 123 BURKINA FASO 6 3 1 2 8 5 +3 104 BOTSWANA 6 0 1 5 1 8 -7 1

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP J)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 TUNISIA 6 5 0 1 12 4 +8 152 EGYPT 6 4 1 1 16 5 +11 133 NIGER 6 1 2 3 4 11 -7 54 ESWATINI 6 0 1 5 2 14 -12 1

Mateus GalianoThe 34-year-old active top scorer is the team’s lead striker and will be looking for one last Hurrah in Egypt 2019 group. The Boavista star is currently the most capped player in the team’s setup and has 12 goals in his 60 games so far.

Naïm SlitiAt the age of 26, Dijon’s winger is one of the most important players of the team. The last two years, he is yet to miss any game of the national team since he made his debut in 2016. His speed, agility, goalscoring and positioning will be key for the team if they are to make any headway.

Srdjan VasiljevicThe appointment of the Serbian was seen as a risk but has proven to be a brilliant one. He played all his career in Eastern Europe in his home country, Serbia as well as Romania and Kazakhstan.His coaching experience has been largely spent in Serbia as well where he was assistant to former national team managers: Vladimir Petrović and Radovan Ćurčić before becoming manager for the Palancas Negras in 2017.

Alain GiresseA former world champion as a footballer, the 66-year-old coach knows the African football scene very well having worked as manager of Mali, Gabon and Senegal.He is yet to win anything during his assignments on the African continent.


Angola will fancy their chances of making it to the next round given the relative openness of the group they find themselves in. Mali and Tunisia are the major competitors for the two tickets.Even if they do somehow find themselves in the second round, it is doubtful that they have what it takes to make it beyond that.

Tunisia will look to do well in this tournament though they have been shown to be flaky on occasion. Stability and consistency have never been the hallmark of the team so these are characteristics they will need to enforce. However, it is a team still improving in many aspects so a second-round appearance would be seen as a sign of growth.


GOALKEEPERS

TONY CABAÇA 33 1 0 1° DE AGOSTO

LANDÚ MAVANGA 29 34 0 INTERCLUBE

NDULO 23 1 0 DESPORTIVO DA HUÍLA

DEFENDERS

DANI MASSUNGUNA 33 46 1 1° DE AGOSTO

BASTOS QUISSANGA 27 44 2 LAZIO

ISAAC CORREIA 28 17 0 1° DE AGOSTO

EDDIE AFONSO 25 11 0 PETRO DE LUANDA

PAIZO 27 9 0 1° DE AGOSTO

BRUNO GASPAR 26 0 0 SPORTING CP

JONATHAN BUATU 25 15 0 RIO AVE

MIDFIELDERS

HERENILSON 22 22 0 PETRO DE LUANDA

STÉLVIO CRUZ 30 10 0 DUDELANGE

SHOW 20 10 0 1° DE AGOSTO

JOSÉ MACAIA GANGA 25 0 0 1° DE AGOSTO

DJALMA CAMPOS 32 46 7 ALANYASPOR

FREDY KULEMBE 29 21 2 ANTALYASPOR

GERALDO 27 20 1 AL AHLY

FORWARDS

MATEUS GALIANO 34 59 12 BOAVISTA

GELSON DALA 22 22 11 RIO AVE

MABULULU 29 7 4 1° DE AGOSTO

CHICO 27 3 0 BRAVOS DO MAQUIS

WILSON EDUARDO 28 1 1 BRAGA

EVANDRO BRANDAO 28 1 0 LEIXOES

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GOALKEEPERS

FAROUK BEN MUSTAPHA 29 22 0 AL SHABAB

MOUEZ HASSEN 24 5 0 NICE

MOEZ BEN CHERIFA 27 18 0 ES TUNIS

DEFENDERS

MOHAMED DRÄGER 22 3 0 PADERBORN 07

RAMI BEDOUI 29 13 0 AL FAYHA

YASSINE MERIAH 25 27 3 OLYMPIACOS

DYLAN BRONN 23 10 1 AA GENT

OUSSAMA HADDADI 27 15 0 DIJON

NASSIM HNID 22 0 0 CS SFAXIEN

WADJI KECHRIDA 23 0 0 ES SAHEL

AYMAN BEN MOHAMED 24 4 0 ES TUNIS

MIDFIELDERS

ELLYES SKHIRI MONTPELLIER

FERJANI SASSI 27 46 4 ZAMALEK

NAÏM SLITI 26 29 6 DIJON

BASSEM SRARFI 21 11 0 NICE

GHAILENCE CHAALALI 25 9 1 ES TUNIS

MARC LAMTI 18 1 0 BAYER LEVERKUSEN

KARIM AOUADHI 33 3 0 ES SAHEL

FORWARDS

YOUSSEF MSAKNI 28 53 14 KAS EUPEN

WAHBI KHAZRI 28 43 15 SAINT ETIENNE

ANICE BADRI 28 15 4 ES TUNIS

FIRAS CHAOUAT 23 4 2 SFAXIEN

TAHA YASSINE KHENISI 27 30 6 ES TUNIS

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TUNISIA ANGOLA EE

Not much is expected of the Lions of Chinguetti

One of the more naturally talented teams on the continent, it is a bit

surprising that the Eagles have only been present at 10 of the previous 31 editions. The runners-up spot in 1972 is the highest level that the team has achieved in its appearances. After 2008, Mali has been an almost constant fixture in the competition. However, in the two previous competitions they failed to go past the group stage,

an issue they would love to rectify this time around. They certainly have the ability to do so as shown by their unbeaten run in the qualification series.It is heavily dependent on Europe-based talent with only one player plying his trade in an African club. The team has rich talent with a lot of emphasis on utilizing the speedy nature of the players and good goalscoring returns from the midfield. A disadvantage may

be the relative lack of experience as no player on the team has more than 30 national caps. The absence of Yves Bissouma will be felt. The Brighton’s player is yet to overcome the hip injury he sustained during the recently concluded Premier League season.

AFCON 2019 is historic in the annals of Mauritanian football as it will be the

first time in which the team will appear in the finals.The tiny nation has thanks to the expansion of the competition to 24 teams, found its way into the exalted league of nations to have made an appearance in Africa’s biggest football competition.This progress can be considerably

attributed to French coach Corentin Martins, who has been on the Mauritanian bench since 2014. Focusing on the defence, he has built a team that has looked solid

against the lesser lights of African football.

They did very well in qualifying, losing the top spot to Angola only on goal difference after winning 4 and losing 2 of its 6 matches in the series.Apart from the team’s lack of experience, the players’ level of

exposure is not very high with a huge majority playing either in

Mauritania or in the leagues of fellow Arab nations like Egypt, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and so on.Mamado Niass and Mohamed Soudani will be missed as both players who were important during the qualification series are out for various reasons.Silèye Gaye, Moulaye Ahmed Khalil, Ismaël Diakité, Abdoul Ba and Moustapha Diaw are among some of the top players the team will be counting on in the tournament.


10/06/17 MALI – GABON 2-109/09/18 SOUTH SUDAN – MALI 0-312/10/18 MALI – BURUNDI 0-016/10/18 BURUNDI – MALI 1-117/11/18 GABON – MALI 0-123/03/19 MALI – SOUTH SUDAN 3-0


10/06/17 BOTSWANA – MAURITANIA 0-108/09/18 MAURITANIA – BURKINA FASO 2-012/10/18 ANGOLA – MAURITANIA 4-116/10/18 MAURITANIA – ANGOLA 1-018/11/18 MAURITANIA – BOTSWANA 2-122/03/19 BURKINA FASO – MAURITANIA 1-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 RUNNERS-UP1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 FOURTH PLACE1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 FOURTH PLACE2004 FOURTH PLACE2006 -2008 GROUP STAGE2010 GROUP STAGE2012 THIRD PLACE2013 THIRD PLACE2015 GROUP STAGE2017 GROUP STAGE


QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP C)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 MALI 6 4 2 0 10 2 +8 142 BURUNDI 6 2 4 0 11 5 +6 103 GABON 6 2 2 2 7 5 +2 84 SOUTH SUDAN 6 0 0 6 2 18 -16 0

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP I)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 ANGOLA 6 4 0 2 9 6 +3 122 MAURITANIA 6 4 0 2 7 6 +1 123 BURKINA FASO 6 3 1 2 8 5 +3 104 BOTSWANA 6 0 1 5 1 8 -7 1

Molla WaguéTo show just how young and inexperienced this Malian side is, captain Wague is the most capped player in the team with just 30 caps at the age of 28.Owned by Udinese in Serie A, he has spent a bit of time on loan outside the club and spent last season in the English Championship with Nottingham Forest.His leadership, strength and aerial prowess will be crucial for the team in Egypt.

Moulaye Ahmed KhalilThe most capped player currently in the side, he has been without a club since he was let go by Tunisian club, AS Gabes.The 31-year-old has played 47 times for the team and has scored 12 games for the team. His strength, hold-up play and finishing will be key for the team if they are to do anything meaningful.

Mohamed MagassoubaIn September 2017, the 61-year-old Magassouba took over as caretaker manager and will continue in this capacity for the AFCON finals. Previously, he was the technical director of the team and is relatively inexperienced in coaching.

Corentin MartinsA well-travelled player, he had experience playing at various levels of French football and also in La Liga with Deportivo La Coruna.His coaching career has been mainly as an assistant at French club, Brest for a long time before joining up with the national team in 2014.


Mali players and fans will wish to at least, reach the quarterfinals. The team has the potential to do so but the lack of international experience may be a hindrance. Effectiveness in attack has been an issue for a team like the Eagles as they have not ben scoring as much as they should.The Tunisians and the Angolans will be their most difficult opponents and anything after the second round will be regarded as a bonus.

Nobody expects anything fantastic from the Lions of Chinguetti as given their lack of quality, exposure and experience; it is believed that they will prop up the group in last position.Anything like the first goal and point will be celebrated on the streets of Nouakchott.


GOALKEEPERS

DJIGUI DIARRA 24 25 0 STADE MALIEN

ADAMA KÉÏTA 29 1 0 DJOLIBA

MAMADOU SAMASSA 29 14 0 TROYES

DEFENDERS

MOLLA WAGUÉ 28 30 4 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

HAMARI TRAORÉ 27 18 0 RENNES

YOUSSOUF KONÉ 23 12 0 LOSC

MAMADOU FOFANA 21 9 1 METZ

FALAYE SACKO 24 8 0 VITÓRIA DE GUIMARÃES

MIDFIELDERS

LASSANA COULIBALY 23 14 0 RANGERS

ADAMA TRAORÉ 23 8 2 CERCLE BRUGGE

DIADIE SAMASSÉKOU 23 8 0 RED BULL SALZBURG

AMADOU HAIDARA 21 6 0 RB LEIPZIG

IDRISSA TRAORÉ 28 4 0 SHABAAB AL JABAL

YVES BISSOUMA 22 14 3 BRIGHTON

SOULEYMANE DIARRA 24 4 0 LENS

CHEICK DOUCOURÉ 19 2 0 LENS

FORWARDS

MOUSSA MAREGA 28 20 2 PORTO

ADAMA TRAORÉ 24 19 3 US ORLÉANS

ABDOULAY DIABY 28 17 5 SPORTING CP

MOUSSA DOUMBIA 24 17 3 REIMS

KALIFA COULIBALY 27 14 1 NANTES

MOUSSA DJÉNÉPO 20 9 0 STANDARD LIÉGE

ADAMA NIANE 25 5 0 TROYES

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GOALKEEPERS

BRAHIM SOULEYMANE 32 23 0 ACS KSAR

NAMORI DIAW 27 2 0 ACS KSAR

BABACAR DIOP 20 1 0 ASC POLICE

DEFENDERS

ALY ABEID 21 28 2 AD ALCORCÓN

ABDOUL BA 25 28 0 AJ AUXERRE

MOUSTAPHA DIAW 22 28 0 TEVRAGH-ZEÏNA

BAKARY N'DIAYE 20 16 0 DIFAÂ EL JADIDI

SALLY SARR 33 12 0 SERVETTE

HAROUNA SY 27 8 0 GRENOBL

DIADIÉ DIARRA 26 4 0 GUEGNON

ABDOULKADER THIAM 20 3 0 US ORLÉANS B

MIDFIELDERS

SILÈYE GAYE 27 41 2 NOUADHIBOU

HACEN EL IDE 21 35 6 REAL VALLADOLID

KHASSA CAMARA 26 31 2 XANTHI

MOHAMED YALI 21 31 2 DRB TADJENANET

DIALLO GUIDILÈYE 29 22 1 KEŞLA FK

ALASSANE DIOP 21 7 0 HAJER

IBRÉHIMA COULIBALY 30 1 0 GRENOBLE

FORWARDS

MOULAYE AHMED KHALIL 31 47 12 AS GABÈS

ISMAËL DIAKITÉ 27 42 7 US TATAOUINE

ADAMA BA 25 23 5 GAZIŞEHIR GAZIANTEP

HEMEYA TANJY 21 6 0 NOUADHIBOU

SOULEYMANE ANNE 21 1 0 AURILLAC ARPAJON

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BETBIGA ODDSGroup Winners 2,25

Top 3 4,75Winners 15,50




MAURITANIA E MALI EThe Eagles are looking to soar into the latter stages

The Black Stars will look to shine brightlyIndomitable Lions look to make things rightIn some ways, there are similarities

between Ghana and Liverpool FC. The team has been ever-present at the

AFCON finals and has won the third-most titles in the competition’s history (4).However, the last time they won the tournament was in 1982 and has lost in the finals 3 times since then. The team has not missed AFCON since missing the 2004 edition. In the last six tournaments, the team managed to reach at least the semifinals and have narrowly lost out to Egypt and Cote d’Ivoire in the 2010 and 2015 finals.With some of the players in the team

approaching their twilight years, the Stars will be desperate to go all the way at this year’s edition. After three consecutive appearances (2006, 2010, 2014), the “Black Stars” missed last year’s FIFA World Cup and will be eager to show that they remain one of the continent’s heavyweights.Manager and former captain, Kwesi Appiah knows the pressure is on him to deliver and he might not get a second bite of the cherry. He has been using variations of the 4-4-2 formation, adapting the system to the needs for each match. Occasionally, he chooses the 4-1-4-1 setup

to provide solidity in the middle.The squad is comprised of players from various European and Asian clubs. John Boye (Metz), Kwando Asamoah (Inter Milan), Christian Atsu (Newcastle United) and of course the Ayew brothers; Andre (Fenerbahce) and Jordan (Crystal Palace) are some of the notable footballers on the team.Players like Harrison Afful, Daniel Amartey, Abdul Majeed Waris will not be on the team. Despite the controversy surrounding his “resignation”, record appearance maker and top scorer, Asamoah Gyan will be at the tournament.

The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations was initially scheduled to be held in Cameroon for

the first time since 1972, but due to delays in the delivery of infrastructure and armed conflicts in the country, the hosting rights were taken away and given to Egypt.The decision by CAF’s Executive Committee hurt the image of the defending champions who intent to take revenge in the pitch and give joy to their fans. The Indomitable

Lions will be buoyed by feelings of “injustice” and the desire to defend the crown they won in 2017.Cameroon’s failure to qualify for last summer’s FIFA World Cup

caused a lot of concern in the media and among fans. In this edition of

AFCON, the 5-time winners will want to prove that they remain a powerhouse and one of the greatest teams on the continent.Striker Christian Bassogog plays in China for Henan Jianye and he is the

only player in the squad who doesn’t play for a European club.

Dutch legend Clarence Seedorf has been in charge since last August and even though he had to overcome many obstacles, now seems to “sit more comfortably. In the qualifiers and friendly matches played so far, he seems to have settled on a 4-2-3-1 formation.Top striker, Vincent Aboubakar (FC Porto) will not be in Egypt due to an injury, the same goes for Tristan Dingomé, who was called in the national team for the first time.


11/06/17 GHANA – ETHIOPIA 5-008/09/18 KENYA – GHANA 1-011/10/18 GHANA – SIERRA LEONE Cancelled14/10/18 SIERRA LEONE – GHANA Cancelled18/11/18 ETHIOPIA – GHANA 0-223/03/19 GHANA – KENYA 1-0


10/06/17 CAMEROON – MOROCCO 1-008/09/18 COMOROS – CAMEROON 1-112/10/18 CAMEROON – MALAWI 1-016/10/18 MALAWI – CAMEROON 0-016/11/18 MOROCCO – CAMEROON 2-023/03/19 CAMEROON – COMOROS 3-0

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 CHAMPIONS1965 CHAMPIONS1968 RUNNERS-UP1970 RUNNERS-UP1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 CHAMPIONS1980 GROUP STAGE1982 CHAMPIONS1984 GROUP STAGE1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 RUNNERS-UP1994 QUARTERFINALS1996 FOURTH PLACE1998 GROUP STAGE2000 QUARTERFINALS2002 QUARTERFINALS2004 -2006 GROUP STAGE2008 THIRD PLACE2010 RUNNERS-UP2012 FOURTH PLACE2013 FOURTH PLACE2015 RUNNERS-UP2017 FOURTH PLACE

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 GROUP STAGE1972 THIRD PLACE1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 GROUP STAGE1984 CHAMPIONS1986 RUNNERS-UP1988 CHAMPIONS1990 GROUP STAGE1992 FOURTH PLACE1994 -1996 GROUP STAGE1998 QUARTER-FINALS2000 CHAMPIONS2002 CHAMPIONS2004 QUARTER-FINALS2006 QUARTER-FINALS2008 RUNNERS-UP2010 QUARTER-FINALS2012 -2013 -2015 GROUP STAGE2017 CHAMPIONS

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP F)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 GHANA 4 3 0 1 8 1 +7 92 KENYA 4 2 1 1 4 1 +3 73 ETHIOPIA 4 0 1 3 0 10 -10 14 SIERRA LEONE Disqualified

QUALIFICATION STANDINGS (GROUP B)Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 MOROCCO 6 3 2 1 8 3 +5 112 CAMEROON 6 3 2 1 6 3 +3 113 MALAWI 6 1 2 3 2 6 -4 54 COMOROS 6 1 2 3 5 9 -4 5

André AyewThe “war” is over. Fenerbahçe’s striker missed most of the national matches of 2017 and 2018, due to a misunderstanding with his country’s football association. He is back in the squad and ready to give everything for the team he loves.No longer as fleet-footed as he used to be, the elder son of legendary former Ghanaian captain, Abedi-Ayew Pele will be important for the team going forward as his intelligence, passing and ghosting into good goalscoring positions will be crucial for the team.

Carlos KameniEgypt 2019 looks set to be Kanemi’s swansong at the national level. After an exceptional career in France, Spain and now Turkey, he hopes to say “goodbye” to the national team with one more international trophy. He may have aged but remains one of the finer goalkeepers on the continent and his experience will be vital if the Lions are to go all the way.

Kwesi AppiahThe former player captained the team with distinction during his 7-year stint as a player. Since he hung up his playing boots, his coaching career has been almost exclusively involved the national setup in the country except for a stint in Sudan with SC Khartoum. The 58-year coached the Black Stars between 2012 – 2014 before journeying to Sudan.He was restored as national team manager in 2017.

Clarence SeedorfA modern-day footballing great, Seedorf was highly decorated as a player. He won the UEFA Champions League title with Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan (twice) amongst the many honours he won.His coaching career has so far been less successful with not-so-good stints at AC Milan, Shenzhen FC in China and with Deportivo La Coruna in Spain.He was appointed manager for the Indomitable Lions in August 2018 and qualified the team for AFCON as they lost out top spot to Morocco on goals’ difference.

ONE TO WATCH

ONE TO WATCH

COACH

COACH

The goal for Ghana is always the same: to win the trophy. The Black Stars are expected to qualify for the 2nd round without facing too many problems. The Indomitable Lions are expected to be the major foe in the group.After that, the climb is expected to become tougher but with an expectant public waiting on the streets of towns like Accra, Kumasi and co, the Stars are condemned to deliver.

Having already won AFCON 5 times (second only to Egypt), the Indomitable Lions are expected to be amongst the favourites for the trophy. Given the group they find themselves in and their potential path to a 6th title, anything less than a semi-final appearance will be considered a failure.


GOALKEEPERS

RICHARD OFORI 25 15 0 MARIZBURG UNITED

LAWRENCE ATI-ZIGI 22 3 0 SOCHAUX

FELIX ANNAN 24 1 0 ASSANTE KOTOKO

DEFENDERS

JOHN BOYE 32 64 5 METZ

LUMOR AGBENYENU 33 12 0 GOZTEPE

KASIM NUHU 23 6 2 1899 HOFFENHEIM

JOSEPH AIDOO 23 1 0 GENK

ANDY YIADOM 27 5 0 READING

ABDUL BABA RAHMAN 24 25 0 REIMS

JONATHAN MENSAH 28 61 1 COLUMBUS CREW

JOSEPH ATTAMAH 22 4 0 BASAKSEHIR

MIDFIELDERS

MUBARAK WAKASO 28 54 12 ALAVÉS

THOMAS PARTEY 25 21 8 ATLÉTICO MADRID

KWADWO ASAMOAH 30 71 4 INTER MILAN

AFRIYIE ACQUAH 27 33 1 EMPOLI

ANDRÉ AYEW 29 81 14 FENERBAHÇE

CHRISTIAN ATSU 27 61 10 NEWCASTLE UNITED

SAMUEL OWUSU 23 0 0 CUKARICKI

THOMAS AGYEPONG 22 5 0 HIBERNIAN

FORWARDS

JORDAN AYEW 27 53 14 CRYSTAL PALACE

CALEB EKUBAN 25 2 2 TRABZONSPOR

ASAMOAH GYAN 33 105 51 KAYSERISPOR

KWABENA OWUSU 21 0 0 LEGANES

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GOALKEEPERS

CARLOS KAMENI 35 72 0 FENERBAHÇE

FABRICE ONDOA 23 42 0 OOSTENDE

ANDRÉ ONANA 23 9 0 AJAX

DEFENDERS

COLLINS FAI 26 25 0 STANDARD LIÈGE

MICHAEL NGADEU-NGADJUI 28 26 2 SLAVIA PRAHA

YAYA BANANA 27 11 1 PANIONIOS

JEAN ARMEL KANA-BIYIK 29 6 0 KAYSERISPOR

GAËTAN BONG 31 15 0 BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION

AMBROISE OYONGO 27 37 2 MONTPELLIER

DAWA TCHAKONTE 23 1 0 FK MARIUPOL

MIDFIELDERS

ANDRÉ-FRANK ZAMBO ANGUISSA 23 16 2 FULHAM

PIERRE KUNDE 23 6 0 MAINZ 05

GEORGES MANDJECK 30 48 0 MACCABI HAIFA

ARNAUD DJOUM 30 17 0 HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN FC

WILFRIED KAPTOUM 22 0 0 BETIS

FORWARDS

STÉPHANE BAHOKEN 27 5 1 ANGERS SCO

JACQUES ZOUA 27 26 0 ASTRA GIURGIU

CLINTON N'JIE 25 27 8 MARSEILLE

CHRISTIAN BASSOGOG 23 22 5 HENAN JIANYE

ERIC MAXIM CHOUPO-MOTING 30 50 15 PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN

KARL TOKO-EKAMBI 26 22 2 VILLAREAL

OLIVIER BOUMAL 29 2 0 PANIONIOS

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CAMEROON F GHANA F

The Wild Dogs will be looking to get involvedThe Squirrels will be scurrying for their first winΙn 2017, Guinea-Bissau qualified to be

at AFCON for the first time. This year, they will once again be involved. Not

much is expected of this tiny nation as qualification for the second round looks to be something completely beyond them.Placed in one of the most “equal” groups during the qualifiers, the Bissauians finished first in a group where they were just 2 points better than the last placed team in the group: Zambia.This is another “European” team, since only four of its squad members compete outside of Europe. Due to its Portuguese colonial past, the team is heavily

influenced by Portuguese ideas with over half of the 23-man team playing in the Portuguese first, second and junior divisions.Manager Baciro Candé, who has taken charge of the team once before is the most successful coach in the country’s football history. He prefers the 4-3-3 formation with huge emphasis on what small teams like Guinea-Bissau usually focus on: being defensively resolute. The lack of a good striker

capable of taking some of the very few chances the team creates will be a huge issue for the side at AFCON.This is a team for whom the

record goalscorers; Cícero Semedo and Nando Co have 6 goals each.

Frédéric Mendy, the team’s current most reliable scorer has only hit four goals during his international career. To be fair though, this has only been done in 11 games which is a very good tally.

The Republic of Benin are not regulars at AFCON, this will be their fourth appearance

at the continental fiesta. In the three previous appearances (2004, 2008 and 2010) they collected just one point, and will now be hoping to achieve their first win.Their route through the qualifiers was very strange. They won all the qualifiers at home but lost all the games played away.Like many other national teams

that will be at Egypt 2019, most of Benin’s squad play for European clubs with only five of them are competing in various leagues across Africa.

French coach Michel Dussuyer took the helm one year ago and

has gone about imposing a new style of play on the team. Knowing that the strength of his team is in the midfield, he seems to prefer the 5-4-1 formation, which very often switches to a 4-5-1 setup. The Squirrels

prefer to play defensively to be dangerous on the counterattack.

This has served them well as it helped achieve qualification and will be their go-to approach in the finals.The final squad will miss some senior players like Cédric Hountonji, Jacques Bessan, Yannick Aguémon and Djiman Koukou for various reasons. However, these absentees will not affect Dussuyer’s plans since they all played minor roles in the team. Unfortunately, Rudy Gestede will be missed as the Middlesbrough striker announced his international retirement in 2016.


10/06/17 GUINEA-BISSAU – NAMIBIA 1-008/09/18 MOZAMBIQUE – GUINEA-BISSAU 2-210/10/18 ZAMBIA – GUINEA-BISSAU 2-114/10/18 GUINEA-BISSAU – ZAMBIA 2-117/11/18 NAMIBIA – GUINEA-BISSAU 0-023/03/19 GUINEA-BISSAU – MOZAMBIQUE 2-2


11/06/17 BENIN – GAMBIA 1-009/09/18 TOGO – BENIN 0-012/10/18 ALGERIA – BENIN 2-016/10/18 BENIN – ALGERIA 1-017/11/18 GAMBIA – BENIN 3-124/03/19 BENIN – TOGO 2-1

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 -2004 -2006 -2008 -2010 -2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 GROUP STAGE

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS RECORDYEAR ROUND1957 -1959 -1962 -1963 -1965 -1968 -1970 -1972 -1974 -1976 -1978 -1980 -1982 -1984 -1986 -1988 -1990 -1992 -1994 -1996 -1998 -2000 -2002 -2004 GROUP STAGE2006 -2008 GROUP STAGE2010 GROUP STAGE2012 -2013 -2015 -2017 -


1 GUINEA-BISSAU 6 2 3 1 8 7 +1 92 NAMIBIA 6 2 2 2 5 7 -2 83 MOZAMBIQUE 6 2 2 2 7 7 0 84 ZAMBIA 6 2 1 3 8 7 +1 7


1 ALGERIA 6 3 2 1 9 4 +5 112 BENIN 6 3 1 2 5 6 -1 103 GAMBIA 6 1 3 2 6 6 0 64 TOGO 6 1 2 3 4 8 -4 5

ZezinhoThe 26-year old midfielder needs 5 more matches to become the most capped player in Guinea-Bissau’s history. He has been essential for the Djurtus since 2011 and he hasn’t missed a single match in the last four years. He has played in Portugal, Greece, and Cyprus and now competes in Slovakia for Senica.He is the team’s captain and has hit 2 goals in 31 matches.

Stéphane SessègnonHe is the most capped player and the top scorer of Benin, a true living legend for the team. At the age of 35, this looks set to be his last major tournament. He has played professionally in the top leagues in France, England and presently, in Turkey.No longer as fast as he used to be, Sessègnon remains the county’s most capped player as well as the joint-top scorer in the nation’s history with 21 goals (same total as Razak Omotoyossi).

Baciro CandéThe 52-year old played professional football in Portugal but not for a long time. He has been manager of the team since 2001 and was the manager of Guinea-Bissau from 2001 to 2010. He left to coach some clubs in the local league but returned to the head coach position in December 2016.

Michel DussuyuerThis is the second time the 60-year old Frenchman will manage the Republic of Benin. He was a player in the French Ligue 1 with Cannes and Nice his most prominent clubs.Apart from a one-year spell as manager at Cannes, all his coaching has been done in the African continent for various Francophone national teams. Guinea (thrice), Cote d’Ivoire and twice for the Squirrels represent the sum total of his coaching experience.

ONE TO WATCH

ONE TO WATCH

COACH

COACH

The objective for Guinea-Bissau will be to gain valuable experience. They need to work hard and keep improving, so in the nearest future, they could become viable competitors for quarter/semifinal places at AFCON or even for World Cup qualification. However, this is not something that will happen in the foreseeable future. Qualifying for the next round looks to be something that is beyond them at this point.

Benin’s main goal in the tournament is to achieve something different. Dussuyer’s team will be seeking its first win in AFCON finals and their big chance will be the meeting against Guinea-Bissau on June 29. Given the pedigree of Cameroon and Ghana, it’s very difficult to see the Beninoise qualifying for the next round.


GOALKEEPERS

JONAS MENDES 29 32 0 ACADÉMICO VISEU

RUI DABÓ 24 1 0 ARMACENENSES

EDIMAR CÁ 18 0 0 UDIB

DEFENDERS

MAMADU CANDÉ 28 16 0 SANTA CLARA

JUARY SOARES 27 15 1 MAFRA

RUDINILSON SILVA 24 15 0 OLYMPIQUE KHOURIBGA

TOMÁS DABÓ 25 7 0 RIETI

NADJACK 25 7 0 RIO AVE

MARCELO DJALÓ 25 1 0 FULHAM

NANÚ 25 1 0 MARÍTIMO

MIDFIELDERS

ZEZINHO 26 32 2 SENICA

SORI MANÉ 23 8 0 COVA PIEDADE

PELÉ 27 7 0 NOTTINGHAM FOREST

JOÃO JAQUITÉ 23 2 0 TONDELA

BURÁ 23 2 0 AVES

MORETO CASSAMÁ 21 0 0 REIMS

FORWARDS

PIQUETI DJASSI 26 16 3 AL SHOUILA

TONI SILVA 25 13 2 AL ITTIHAD ALEXANDRIA

FRÉDÉRIC MENDY 30 11 4 VITÓRIA DE SETÚBAL

JORGINHO INTIMA 23 5 0 CSKA SOFIA

JOSEPH MENDES 28 2 0 AJACCIO

MAMA BALDÉ 23 1 0 AVES

ROMÁRIO BALDÉ 22 1 0 ACADÉMICA

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GOALKEEPERS

FABIEN FARNOLLE 34 23 0 MALATYASPOR

SATURNIN ALLAGBÉ 25 13 0 NIORT

CHÉRIF DINE KAKPO 21 0 0 BUFFLES

DEFENDERS

KHALED ADÉNON 33 59 2 AMIENS

JUNIOR SALOMON 33 21 0 PLATEAU UNITED

DAVID KIKI 25 18 0 RED STAR

SÉIDOU BARAZÉ 28 16 0 YZEURE

EMMANUEL IMOROU 30 12 0 CAEN

RODRIGUE FASSINOU 20 11 0 ASPAC

OLIVIER VERDON 23 10 0 SOCHAUX

MOÏSE ADILEHOU 23 3 0 LEVADIAKOS

MIDFIELDERS

STÉPHANE SESSÈGNON 35 73 21 GENÇLERBIRLIĞI

MAMA SÉÏBOU 23 22 2 SC TOULON

JORDAN ADÉOTI 30 22 0 AUXERRE

SESSI D'ALMEIDA 23 5 1 YEOVIL TOWN

TIDJANI ANAANE 22 1 0 BEN GUERDANE

KOSSI FIOGBÉ 18 0 0 CLUB AFRICAIN

FORWARDS

MICKAËL POTÉ 34 46 7 ADANA DEMIRSPOR

JODEL DOSSOU 27 24 2 VADUZ

DAVID DJIGLA 23 19 4 NIORT

STEVE MOUNIÉ 24 14 3 HUDDERSFIELD TOWN

SEGBÉ AZANKPO 26 6 0 FK SENICA

CEBIO SOUKOU 26 1 0 HANSA

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BENIN F GUINEA-BISSAU F

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