The Africa Cup of Nations is back in its January slot after Covid forced the competition to be postponed last summer. That means 24 nations head to Cameroon for the latest staging of the tournament which begins on Sunday.
One of those nations are Algeria and they are back to attempt to defend the title they won three years ago. In a World Cup year there will be plenty of teams looking to put a bit of a marker down and launch a title bid of their own.
Recent Winners
2019 – Algeria
2017 – Cameroon
2015 – Ivory Coast
2013 – Nigeria
2012 – Zambia
2010 – Egypt
2008 – Egypt
2006 – Egypt
2004 – Tunisia
2002 – Cameroon
The Format
This tournament has retained the format that was used in the last renewal three years ago. That means it is a 24 team event like the European Championship. The 24 teams have been placed into groups of four where the top two in each after everyone has played each other progress along with the best four third placed sides. The knockout stage now consists of a round of 16 as well as the quarter finals onwards. The champions will be crowned in Yaounde on February 6.
Groups A+B
The host nation Cameroon head up Group A of the tournament. The 2017 winners will be looking to use home advantage to maximum effect and they will be expected to dominate a group where the second seeds at Burkina Faso. Cape Verde are also in this section but they have Covid issues coming into the tournament which could give Ethiopia some hope. Tournament favourites Senegal are the leading light in Group B. They look to have an even easier assignment with Guinea the next highest ranked side in their group. Zimbabwe and Malawi will be out to prove they are not just here to make up the numbers.
Groups C+D
Group C should throw up some tasty action for us to enjoy. Morocco have been one of the best teams in World Cup qualifying, scoring goals for fun, but they have landed a tricky section with Ghana the second seeds in their group. Ghana remain one of the strongest nations in Africa and will be eyeing up this tournament themselves. Gabon were probably one of the tougher third seeds and they are in this group as well. The minnows Comoros are the other team in this group. Two standout teams headline Group D with Egypt and arguably the best player in the tournament in Mo Salah being joined by a very strong and competitive looking Nigeria outfit. They will both be expected to dominate the group but Sudan and Guinea-Bissau will have other ideas.
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Groups E+F
The defending champions Algeria will look to make a successful defence of their title from Group E. They will run into an Ivory Coast unit who might well be smarting from the fact they have been eliminated from World Cup qualifying before the final stage. Sierra Leone are beginning to improve in this part of the world while Equatorial Guinea are the other team in this section. Group F should be another tasty section of the draw as well with Tunisia the headline act in it. In Mali they might have landed the toughest second seed in their section though. Gambia will be looking to cause an upset or two here while Mauritania have qualified for the second successive event and will be looking to be competitive.
Betting
Usually I would load up on outright bets for an event as high profile as this, especially as all the matches are live on Sky or BBC, but in this Covid riddled world I just don’t believe the competition will go a whole month without being impacted by the pandemic so I’ll keep outright bets to a minimum and to what I perceive as value. I’m certainly not piling into a single figure price only to see them get smashed up by Covid and basically end their chance.
Usually when this tournament is in Central Africa we can eliminate the northern nations. They have only won three of the 16 events outside the north region of the country which puts paid to the likes of Algeria, Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia. Home advantage is likely to make Cameroon hard to stop while Senegal look worthy favourites but at a bigger price Mali could be the ones to be on. They didn’t have the hardest World Cup qualifying group but they went 5-1-0 in it and never conceded a single goal. Their defence will be tested more in this tournament but with Newcastle target Boubakar Kouyaté behind a very strong looking midfield which is likely to include Leipzig star Amadou Haidara and Brighton enforcer Yves Bissouma, this is a side that look equipped to go deep in the event. Kalifa Coulibaly and Ibrahima Kone should ensure goals come nicely so at 25/1 I think there is a bit of mileage in the West Africans of Mali to go well here.
Tips
Back Mali to win Africa Cup of Nations 2021 (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 26.00 with BetVictor (1/2 1-2)
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