Africa Cup of Nations Group D preview: Ivory Coast, Mali, Cameroon & Guinea

Firdose Moonda 18:25 17/01/2015
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Big favourites: Ivory Coast a plethora of star players plying their trade in Europe.

    The 2015 Africa Cup of Nations begins in earnest in Equatorial Guinea today, with the continent's finest going up against each other amid a backdrop of Ebola fears and hope that the tournament can provide Africans with a footballing feast that can distract them from health concerns.

    Ahead of the competition, Firdose Moonda looks at the teams vying for glory.

    – AFCON Group A preview

    – AFCON Group B preview
    – AFCON Group C preview

    IVORY COAST

    Coach: Herve Renard
    Captain: Yaya Toure
    Nickname: Les Elephants (The Elephants) 
    AFCON record: Champions 1992; Qualified 20 times

    A golden generation deserves some silverware to match their moniker but Ivory Coast’s best have a barren trophy cabinet and are now starting to lose some of the men who could have helped them fill it. Didier Drogba, for so long the talisman of the side, has retired and according to some of his team-mates, such as Gervinho, it is time to “turn the page.” 

    There’s still plenty of quality in a squad that includes the Toure brothers, Chieck Tiote and Salomon Kalou but they are no longer the convincing heavyweights they once were. Their qualifying campaign included a 4-1 defeat to Cameroon and a 4-3 loss to the DRC and there have been questions over Herve Renard’s ability to control his star players but those doubts may ease the pressure on Ivory Coast, to their benefit. 

    One to watch: From the central Ivorian town of Issia, where his football career started, to the top of the goalscoring charts in the Netherlands with Vitesse and now the home of the English Premier League champions, Manchester City, Wilfried Bony has come a long way. As a proven finisher, who relished one-on-one confrontations with shot stoppers and is attune to beating the offside trap, he may be the man to keep Ivory Coast’s composure when they need it most.

    Trivia: Ivory Coast have reached the quarter-finals in the last five editions of the tournament and been runners-up in two of them. 

    Prediction: As always, they are among the teams fancied to win the tournament but their recent competition record suggests they are more likely to bow out at semi-final stage. 

    MALI

    Coach: Henryk Kasperczak
    Captain: Seydou Keita
    Nickname: Les Aigles (The Eagles)
    AFCON record: Runners’ up 1972; Qualified 8 times 

    Mali may not immediately strike as a country capable of being crowned kings of the continent but victory over Africa’s highest ranked team, Algeria, in qualifying and ANC holders Nigeria in the build-up to the tournament should suggest otherwise. Third-place finishers in the last two African Cups, Mali should be ready to go one better on the back of some impressive form and with a solid squad. 

    Things have become slightly more tricky for them after losing Bordeaux striker Cheick Diabate two weeks before kick-off due to a serious knee injury. Diabate was the top scorer for the French club but now Mali will have to find their goals elsewhere. Given the resourcefulness they have showed in the last two tournaments, it is not impossible to imagine that they will. 

    One to watch: Without Diabate, Mali will look to Wolves’ Bakary Soko to add impetus up-front. He is currently the leading scorer for the Championships side and may be hopeful a strong showing at ANC will catch the eye of some bigger clubs. 

    Trivia: Seydou Keita will play in his seventh ANC. He is one behind record-holder Rigobert Song, who appeared in eight tournaments for Cameroon.

    Prediction: Will be disappointed with anything less than a quarter-final finish.

    CAMEROON

    Coach: Volker Finke
    Captain: Stephane Mbia
    Nickname: Les Lions Indomitables (The Indomitable Lions)
    AFCON record:  Champions 2002, 2000, 1988, 1984; Qualified 16 times

    A team that seems to be in a constant state of rebuilding, Cameroon are going through yet another period of transition. This time it was necessitated by a World Cup which ended in embarrassment. A 4-0 defeat to Croatia saw them eliminated with a game to play and highlighted the infighting that dogged the team. 

    Volker Finke, the German-coach who was among the first to give African players a sustained run in Europe, was spared despite the issues. The same could not be said for Alex Song. Cameroon will be without him and Samuel Eto’o, who has retired from international football (again), and will look to turn things around with an almost entirley new side. So far, the signs are good that they can. They topped their qualifying group, which also included Ivory Coast, and were undefeated as they booked their place at the ANC.

    One to watch: Cameroon’s young players Clinton N’jie and Vincent Aboubaker represent the future but the Indomitable Lions will also need some experience and they will find that in the form of Eric Choupo-Moting. Although only 25, he has already played in two World Cups and has been in a rich streak of form for new club, Schalke. He has scored eight times in 14 matches and should be ready to lead Cameroon’s attack. 

    Trivia: Cameroon were the first African team to qualify for the quarter-finals of the World Cup, which they did in 1990. They have also made a record seven appearances at the event but their last outing in 2014 was their worst. Not only did they finish bottom of the group, they conceded nine goals in their three matches. 

    Prediction: Should get to the knockouts. From there, anything is possible. 

    GUINEA

    Coach:  Michel Dussuyer 
    Captain: Kamil Zayatte
    Nickname: Syli Nationale (National Elephants)
    AFCON record: Runners’ Up 1976; Qualified 10 times 

    Their country has been in the news for all the wrong reasons as the Ebola virus has ravaged the region, so Guinea will want nothing more than to bring some joy to a nation in crisis. They already went some way to doing that by qualifying for the tournament but a good showing would not go amiss. 

    Their disruptions have included having to find a training venue and having two players, Ismael Bangoura and Bouna Sarr, turn down call-ups to concentrate on their club game but none of that has made coach Michel Dussuyer pessimistic. “We will prove our critics wrong,” he has said.

    Dussuyer does not have the reputation of Claude Le Roy, who is attending his eighth tournament but Michel Dussuyer has a history at the tournament too. He took Guinea to the quarter-finals in 2004, assisted Ivory Coast in their 2006 run to the final and was in charge of Benin in 2010. 

    One to watch: Ibrahima Traore scored the decisive goal against Uganda in qualifying and has been making a name for himself in Germany at Borussia Moenchengladbach. He is one his country’s highest-profile players and will shoulder much of the burden of making an impact. 

    Trivia: Guinea had to play their home matches away from home because of the threat of Ebola. Ironically, Morocco, who refused to host the tournament because they feared the spread of the virus, allowed Guinea to stage matches in Casablanca during qualifying.

    Prediction: Unlikely to advance beyond the group stage. 

    Recommended