AFCON
10 Man Ivory Coast Beat Mali, Qualifies To AFCON Semi-Finals
Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023 host country, Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) has qualified to the Semi-finals of the tournament.
SportXparte reports that Ivory Coast emerged victorious in their Quarter-final match against Mali on Saturday despite a setback in the first half of the regular time following a red card.
A back-heel goal by Oumar Diakite in added time at the end of extra time gave Ivory Coast a 2-1 win over Mali in Bouake.
Mali took an early lead in the match, but the Ivorians were resilient until the 90th minute when Simon Adingra scored to equalise for the host.
The Ivory Coast, however, continued their roller coaster AFCON campaign with another positive result, marking an upward turn for the team. Despite a 4-0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea in the group stage, they managed to scrape into the knockout stage.
On the other hand, Mali suffered a heartbreaking outcome, dominating the game for long periods but ultimately losing. They had a chance to equalize with a penalty but missed, ending their record of never losing a Cup of Nations quarter-final.
Looking ahead, the Ivory Coast will now return to Abidjan and face the Democratic Republic of Congo in the semi-finals. However, they will be without Diakite, who received a second yellow card while celebrating his winning goal.
This will be the sixth meeting between the two countries in the AFCON, with the Ivory Coast having won four and drawn one in previous encounters. Their rivals, Mali, have never reached the final, and their best showing was as runners-up in 1972.
In terms of team changes, Ivory Coast caretaker coach Emerse Fae made three adjustments to the lineup that started in their dramatic penalty shootout victory over Senegal in the last-16. Franck Kessie, the scorer of the winning penalty, Nicolas Pepe, and Christian Kouame were brought in, replacing Ibrahim Sangare, Oumar Diakite, and Jean-Philippe Krasso. On the other hand, Mali had one enforced change, with Diadie Samassekou replacing the ill Mohamed Camara in midfield.
