AFCON 2023: Behold All The Quarter-Finalists!
BY VICTOR OSOWOCHI – Already being jovially tagged by pundits as the tournament of shocking results and torrents of surprises, the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast has now berthed in the quarter-final stage this week.
In pocketing the last available quarter-final ticket on Tuesday night, Bafana Bafana of South Africa further stretched the impressive upset status of the competition by outsmarting Africa’s pride at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Atlas Lions of Morocco 2-0 to set up an interesting meeting with giants killers, the Blue Sharks of Cape Verde.
With all the quarter-finalists now flaunting their tickets for a job well done so far, the stage is set for the respective coaches to further plot and map out strategies capable of seeing their teams through to the final slated for Sunday, February 11 inside the resplendent Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan, the Ivorian capital.
The pairings have Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire taking on Eagles of Mali after sending defending champions, Teranga Lions of Senegal packing on penalties, while the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)’s Leopards will face Syli Nationale of Guinea following their victories over Egypt and Equatorial Guinea in the last-16 rounds
Also lining up for a quarter-final showdown are the Super Eagles of Nigeria, who got the better of Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions. Coach Jose Peseiro’s men have a date on Friday, February 2 with dangerous opponents in Angola’s Palancas Negras (Black Sable Antelopes) that cruised past the Brave Warriors of Namibia in the last-16 encounter.
QUARTER-FINALS (FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2024)
1: Nigeria vs Angola – (Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium, Abidjan, 5pm)
2: DR Congo vs Guinea – (Alassane Ouattara Stadium, Abidjan, 8pm)
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2024
3: Mali vs Ivory Coast – (Stade de la Paix, Bouake, 5pm)
4: Cape Verde vs South Africa – (Charles Konan Banny Stadium, Yamoussoukro, 8pm)
SEMI-FINALS (WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2024)
1: Winner 1 vs Winner 4 – (Stade de la Paix, Bouake, 5pm)
2: Winner 3 vs Winner 2 – (Alassane Ouattara Stadium, Abidjan, 8pm)
THIRD PLACE PLAY-OFF (SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2024)
Loser Semi-final 1 vs Loser Semi-final 2 – (Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium, Abidjan, 8pm)
FINAL (SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2024)
Winner Semi-final 1 vs Winner Semi-final 2 (Alassane Ouattara Stadium, Abidjan, 8pm)
