Heroic winner of Senegal on Monday evening, Ivory Coast, host country of the African Cup of Nations, will face Mali in the quarter-finals. The Eagles dominated Bertrand Traoré’s Burkina Faso (2-1).
Qualified almost miraculously for the round of 16 of “its” African Cup of Nations then winning on penalties against the defending champion, Senegal, on Monday, Ivory Coast now knows its opponent in the quarter-finals. The Elephants of Emerse Faé will face Mali, Saturday in Bouaké, for a place in the last four against the winner of DRC-Guinea. This part of the table is very open!
Winners of their group (with one victory and two draws), the Malian Eagles led by Eric Chelle got off to a very good start in this round of 16 thanks to an entry csc from Edmond Tapsoba (3rd). Lassine Sinayoko doubled the lead for his team after returning from the locker room, placing the ball between the legs of Hervé Koffi (47th), but Bertrand Traoré quickly reignited the suspense with a penalty (57th).
Six Ligue 1 players in Mali
The end of the match was tense, with an equalizer from Issoufou Dayo instantly refused for offside (90th), but Mali will be in the quarter-finals (a first since 2013). Ligue 1 players Kiki Kouyaté, Falaye Sacko (both from MHSC), Moussa Diarra (Toulouse), Mohamed Camara (Monaco), Kamory Doumbia (Brest) and Siriné Doucouré (Lorient) therefore remain in Ivory Coast.
