AFCON 2015 Group B preview, trivia and prediction

Firdose Moonda 15:32 17/01/2015
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Roaring on: Champions 11 years ago, Tunisia will be strong favourites to win Group B at the Africa Cup of Nations.

    African Cup of Nations champions 11 years ago, Tunisia are strong favourites to win Group B despite a recent spate of injuries to their strikers. Cape Verde will fancy their chances too after reaching the 2013 quarter-finals while Zambia and Congo DR are outside bets to qualify.

    GROUP B

    ZAMBIA 

    Coach: Honour Janza

    Captain: Rainford Kalaba 

    Nickname: Chipolopolo (The Bullets) 

    Nations’ Cup record: Champions 2012; Qualified 16 times

    As champions three years ago, Zambia may have been expected to dominate the continental game but the opposite happened. They needed a penalty shootout to qualify for the tournament they were defending the following year and struggled to maintain high standards. 

    A transition period which saw Herve Renard depart and management entrusted to a local coach, Honour Janza, has culminated in the dropping of veteran leader Christopher Katongo. Stoppila Sunzu took over but relinquished the armband ten days before kickoff. Zambia appointed Rainford Kalaba, who will leads a side of 10 uncapped players to usher in a new phase of football in the country. “We have adopted a fast game,” Kalusha Bwalya, president of the Zambian FA and former player told the National Mirror, while explaining he is not expecting another trophy, merely a strong showing. 

    One to watch:  This tournament will be Kennedy Mweene’s sixth Nations’ Cup and presents another opportunity to prove himself one of the continent’s best shotstopper. Mweene is a South African resident and signed for their riches club, Mamelodi Sundowns, in 2013 after eight years with Free State Stars. He kept a clean sheet at the 2012 tournament and is also a keen penalty taker. 

    Trivia: When Zambia won the 2012 ANC, they did it a few hundred metres from where their 1993 squad perished in a plane crash. In April that year, the Zambian squad took off from Libreville to a World Cup qualifier against Senegal in Dakar and went down into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all on board. The Zambian team of 2012 visited the site and laid flowers before playing the final. They beat Ivory Coast in a penalty shootout.

    Prediction: Could find themselves just missing out on a ticket to the knockouts 

    TUNISIA 

    Coach: Georges Leekens 

    Captain: Yassine Chikhaoui

    Nickname: Les Aigles de Carthage (The Carthage Eagles) 

    Nations’ Cup record: Champions 2004, Qualified 16 times

    A consistent run at continental competition has seen Tunisia appear at every edition since they one they won in 1994. Unfortunately they have not been able t replicate the performance of that year and have yet to add to their trophy cabinet. 

    They have enjoyed recent good form made it through to the third round of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup, but missed out to Cameroon. Ranked second in Africa, they will hope to have something to show for their improvements, even though they are without they will be missing midfielder Anis Ben-Hatira, who has a toe injury. The squad still includes many players worth watching, including Fakhreddine Ben Youssef, who signed for Ligue 1 club Metz a week ago.

    One to watch: It has to be two to watch in this case with captain Chikhaoui and his Zurich team-mate Amine Chermiti will be key to Tunisia’s hopes in this tournament. Not only are they the most experienced players in the current squad but they have scored 12 goals between them at their Swiss club and have contributed to the club finished second, behind Basel on the table. If they can combine in the same for Tunisia, the country could see similar success. 

    Trivia: Tunisia were the first African side to win a match at the World Cup, when they defeated Mexico 3-1 in 1978. They have been to four World Cups but never got out of the first round. They have also been to 11 ANC’s in succession and failed to reach the knockouts just four times since 1994. 

    Prediction: Final four and possibly beyond. 

    CAPE VERDE 

    Coach: Rui Aguas

    Captain: Marco Soares

    Nickname: Tubaroes Azuis (Blue Sharks)

    Nations’ Cup record: Quarterfinals 2013; Qualified twice 

    Few football fans had heard of the island archipelago of Cape Verde before the 2013 tournament, where they won heats and matches to play in the quarterfinals. The idea of them – a team from a country whose population hovers at half-a-million- was so twee they had to be a flash in the pan, right? Wrong.  

    Cape Verde challenged all through 2014 World Cup qualifiers and only missed out on a place in the third round because they fielded an ineligible player; one who should have been suspended. They were among the first two teams to qualify for this tournament, alongside Algeria, and with a squad laden with European-based players will look to punch above their weight again even without captain Marco Soares. He was axed late last year following fitness concerns.

    One to watch: Heldon is probably Cape Verde’s best-known player but Ryan Mendes may be the man to keep an eye on. Having just turned 25, he is already playing at his second tournament and will want to make it his own. Mendes’ was identified as a star from a young age, when he was the top goal-scorer in an under-17 tournament but has not had as much as he may like to show for all that promise. He has only netted five times for Lille and may see this tournament as a chance to turn that around. 

    Trivia: Cape Verde’s previous two coaches both had day jobs which extended far beyond football. Lucio Antunes was an air-traffic controller and as an aspirant singer, as he showed in his post-match press conference when his team qualified for the quarterfinals. When he left to take up a job at an Angolan club, Felisberto Cardoso, who was a geography professor, took over. Their current manager Rui Aguas’ CV is less colourful. He played for Portugal and managed Braga, among others. 

    Prediction: Should get out of the group but may stumble in the quarter-finals. 

    DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

    Coach: Florent Ibenge 

    Captain: Youssuf Mulumbu

    Nickname: The Leopards

    Nations’ Cup record: Champions 1974 and 1968; Qualified 17 times 

    “Lucky loser,” may not be the title any team wants to carry with them but it is the label on DRC as they enter the 2015 tournament. They fought their way through a tough group which included Cameroon and Ivory Coast and finished as the best third-placed team so immediately have a point to prove. 

    As home to two of the continent most competitive clubs, TP Mazembe and AS Vita, you may expect DRC to have armfuls of accolades but they were last kings of Africa, 41 years ago in 1974. They hope to change that with the appointment of AS Vita’s successful coach Ibenge, who, if can do at country level what he has done with his club, may have be able to turn their fortunes around. 

    One to watch: Back after a two years on the sidelines with a serious knee injury, Dieumerci Mbokani is the highest-profile DRC player and will be expected to shoulder most of the scoring responsibility. He will partner with Crystal Palace’s Yannick Bolasie to form a formidable frontline. 

    Trivia: AS Vita’s Firmin Mubele Ndombe was named CAF’s African player of the Year based in Africa at the most recent awards in January. His most notable performance was a hat-trick over Kaizer Chiefs in the CAF Champions League 

    Prediction: There may not be much expectation on DRC to progress so that may be exactly why they do. 

    Recommended