The semi final stages of the Africa cup of nations concluded on Wednesday February 7th, when Nigeria and Ivory Coast all secured tickets into the last day of play.
The super Eagles of Nigeria locked horns earlier, in a tight encounter with South Africa which ended 1-1 in regular time, before Nigeria secured qualification through penalties. Nigerian goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, was the hero of the night as Nigeria won 4-2 during the shootouts.
The second game of the night, saw Ivory Coast against DR Congo which garnered a historic 51,000 attendance. Dortmund forward, Sébastien Haller gave the hosts the least in the second half, handing the congolese their first defeat of the competition. It ended 1-0 in regular time.
It will be a déjà Vu final, following the 2008 situation in Ghana between Cameroon and Egypt, who were paired in the group stages and went on to face-off in the finals. “Group A” outfits: Ivory Coast and Nigeria, shall conclude the competition on Sunday, February 11th.
This will be the second time the two teams are clashing in the competition this year, with Nigeria having beaten Ivory Coast in the group stages. The Elephants will now have the opportunity to avenge their group stage loss against their opponents.
Nigeria will go into Sunday’s game unbeaten, while for Ivory Coast, it’s been a miraculous run. Ivory Coast sacked their head coach after the group stages, and recruited former player, and countryman Emerse Faé, who has now taken them into their first final since 2015.
Expect an exciting final between the three-time winners, Nigeria and the Two-time winners, Ivory Coast, on Sunday night. Both teams have all to play for.
Elsewhere, Congo and South Africa shall battle it out for the third place prize on Saturday February 10th.
