Ivory Coast triumphs 2-0 over Guinea-Bissau in AFCON opener
Ivory Coast secured a 2-0 victory against Guinea-Bissau in their AFCON debut. Stellar goals from Seko Fofana and Jean-Philippe Krasso in each half ensured a reasonably comfortable win over the determined Guinea-Bissau.
Although not as goal-rich as their recent 5-1 friendly win against Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast has now scored at least twice in their last four matches, hitting the net 18 times.
The challenge lies in sustaining this form against more formidable defenses.
Post-match, players dropped to the turf, likely fatigued by the challenging conditions, including high humidity.
A penny for the thoughts of the Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea players who have to kick-off in the same stadium tomorrow at 14:00 GMT, when it is likely to be much warmer.
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The dominant Seko Fofana is rightly announced as player of the match.
It was his early scorcher that got the tournament off and running.
Are the hosts champion material? Tough to tell from an opening performance in which they were rarely tested.
Ivory Coast didn’t do it with the flamboyance or flourish that many would have expected when they took an early lead.
As for Guinea-Bissau, they have failed to score in their last eight matches at the Africa Cup of Nations, extending their own record for any team in the history of the competition.
It’s been more than 13 hours since they last found the net (797 minutes), Piqueti scoring against Cameroon on 18 January 2017.
Only Benin (14) and Mozambique (12) have played more matches than Guinea-Bissau (10) at the tournament without winning one.
