AFCON 2023: Equatorial Guinea vs Ivory Coast: Predicted lineup, injury news, head-to-head, telecast

Published at :January 20, 2024 at 5:15 PM

Modified at :January 20, 2024 at 5:15 PM

Big clash on matchday 3 of the group stages

On Monday, Equatorial Guinea and Ivory Coast clash in the AFCON at the Olympic Stadium of Ebimpé. Equatorial Guinea are unbeaten in their last three matches. They first played out a 1-1 stalemate with Djibouti before then drawing 1-1 with Nigeria. They were back as winners when they defeated Guinea-Bissau 4-2. Leading Group A, Equatorial Guinea aim to maintain their top position, while Ivory Coast, currently third, seeks a crucial win to enhance their chances of advancing to the knockout stage.

Africa Cup of Nations hosts Ivory Coast are under pressure heading into their final group game against Equatorial Guinea. They were beaten by Nigeria last time out, leaving them behind both the Super Eagles and Monday’s opponents in Group A. It would be a major shock to see the AFCON giants drop out of the competition but only a win would guarantee them safe passage into the knockout stages.

Kick-Off:

Monday, 22nd January, 2024, 10:30 PM (IST), 05:00 PM (GMT), 12:00 PM (EST)

Location: Olympic Stadium of Ebimpe

Form

Equatorial Guinea Form (All Competitions): W-D-D-W-W

Ivory Coast Form (All Competitions): L-W-W-W-W

Players to Watch

Emilio Nsue (Equatorial Guinea)

Veteran striker Emilio Nsue grabbed a hat trick as Equatorial Guinea beat Guinea Bissau 4-2 on Thursday to put themselves in a strong position to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 in the Ivory Coast. He is in good form and also very consistent in his performance. He will be a big three for the opponents as he is really good inside the box and can score from anywhere.

Franck Kessie (Ivory Coast)

The major playing style Kessie is renowned for is his box-to-box nature. The Ivorian is often all over the pitch doing most of the work. This enables him to score goals from his midfield position. He is also always there to help the team defensively, all at the same time. Although he is not a very creative player, his ability to cover many grounds is crucial. Kessie’s physical appearance makes him a driving force that can contain the opponents’ midfield threat.

Match Facts

Equatorial Guinea haven’t lost in their last 10 games.
The winner of their last meeting was Ivory Coast.
In the Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast have a better history than Equatorial Guinea.

Injury and Team News

Emilio Nsue scored a hat-trick for Equatorial Guinea as they beat Guinea-Bissau and much will be expected of him again. They don’t have any injury issues as of now.

For the Ivorians, Sebastian Haller is yet to feature in the tournament and a decision will need to be made on his fitness, Simon Adingra is also doubtful but could pass a late fitness test to be involved in the game. Serge Aurier also came off against Nigeria, though it is not clear if that was due to injury at this stage.

Head-to-Head

Matches: 3

Equatorial Guinea: 0

Ivory Coast: 2

Draws: 1

Predicted Lineup for Equatorial Guinea vs Ivory Coast

Equatorial Guinea Predicted Lineup (4-1-4-1):

Owono(GK); Ndong, Coco, Fernanadez, Akapo; Ganet; Miranda, Pepin, Bikoro, Salvador; Nsue

Ivory Coast Predicted Lineup (4-3-3):

Fofana(GK); Konan, Ndicka, Diomande, Aurier; Kessie, Sangare, Fofana; Boga, Krasso, Kouame

Match Prediction for Equatorial Guinea vs Ivory Coast

While Equatorial Guinea have acquitted themselves well, Ivory Coast will surely have enough in-front-of-home support. The home side will be giving their all to get three points, but this match will end in a stalemate.

Prediction: Equatorial Guinea 1-1 Ivory Coast

Telecast

India – FanCode

UK – Sky Sports

US – beIN Sports

Nigeria – NTA

AFCON 2023 Worldwide Broadcast Details: Click here

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