It is not one of those Saturdays. It is a different one: not because I scored and provided an assist in my first game of the year nor because the pitch was hard & brown. It is because the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations is here. The biggest football event on the continent of Africa kicks off later today with hosts Cote d’Ivoire playing against Guinea-Bissau.
The tournament was originally billed to take place in June/July 2023 but it was moved to January 2024 due to weather conditions. In June/July, it is rainy season in Cote d’Ivoire and most of West Africa and that could impact pitch conditions.
The next AFCON is billed for June 2025 with Morocco as hosts. It is fair to say that the timing of future AFCONs will be dependent on the hosting regions. West & Central Africa will favour January while the North & South are ok with June.
Enough of timing, I am expecting a colourful opening ceremony in Abidjan before the opener. It was worrisome that I could have missed the tournament but DSTV reverted and will be showing all 52 matches. DSTV haven’t shown any of the 2025 qualifiers. They used to be the go-to place for CAF competitions but blanked in the last 1 year.
I had to quickly check the channels to be sure DSTV would air the competition. Phew!
I expect the Elephants of CIV to win by 2+ goals. They have produced great African footballers – Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure, Kolo Toure and many more. Prediction: CIV 3-0 GNB.
The Super Eagles have had to deal with so many injuries. Victor Boniface, Wilfred Ndidi & Umar Sadiq had to step down due to injuries. How far will Jose Peserio go in the tournament? Nigeria were the King’s of the group stage in Cameroon 2021 but fell to an odd goal in the first knockout round.
Kudos to the my friends in the media out there in Abidjan to tell the AFCON story. Fisayo, Jsam, Mike et al, make una remember us. Give us exclusive.
That is all for now. See you at the opening ceremony
SoccerGunz 