Africa-Press – Eswatini. The African Cup of Nations in football (CAN’2023), which kicks off this Saturday night (13), in Côte d’Ivoire, has Morocco, Senegal and Egypt as the main favorites for the title.
Champion Senegal, Egypt, the most titled team (seven) join the usual “suspects”, namely Nigeria, Cameroon and Ghana, in a 34th edition with four Portuguese speakers among the 24 competitors: Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde and Mozambique.
Although it has little tradition in the biggest African national team competition, Morocco (it only won once, in 1976) arrives in Côte d’Ivoire as one of the main favorites to lift the trophy, taking into account the campaign carried out in the last World Cup’2022, in which reached fourth place, leaving opponents like Portugal along the way.
In Qatar, the Moroccans staged the best campaign ever by an African team in a World Championship and will compete in CAN’2023 with practically the same structure, still led by coach Walid Regragui, who has become a national “hero”.
Right in the group stage, Morocco has everything it takes to win Group F, as the draw put Congo, Tanzania and Zambia in the path of the North Africans.
Egypt, record holder, with seven titles, the last in 2010, when the competition was played in Angola, will have Ghana, always a difficult opponent, in Group B, as well as Cape Verde and Mozambique.
Portuguese coach Rui Vitória will try to “give” Mo Salah, the great Egyptian “star” and one of the great figures of this edition of the competition, one of the few titles he lacks, after the Liverpool forward came close to it in 2017 and 2021, when they lost in the final, on both occasions.
Senegal, which won its first title in 2021 and continues to be led on the field by Sadio Mané, will have to face Cameroon in the group stage, another historic player in African football, a champion team five times, the last in 2017.
Another eternal candidate to win the CAN is Nigeria, now led by José Peseiro, with the Portuguese arriving at the competition trying to achieve their first title since 2013, albeit in adverse conditions.
The Nigerian federation itself, at the end of 2023, dissatisfied with the sporting results, assumed the desire to fire the former coach of Sporting, FC Porto and Sporting de Braga, but found itself forced to keep him because it was unable to pay the compensation established in the contract.
Peseiro will have to face the hosts, Ivory Coast, in the group stage, who are also dreaming of their third title, in a group that also includes Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.
The regulations for this Nations Cup, which was supposed to take place in 2023, but intense rain led to its postponement until this January (2024), stipulates that the first two teams classified in each group qualify for the final stage.
The winner of the African Cup of Nations (CAN ’23), to be held in Côte d’Ivoire, from January 13th to February 11th, will receive a prize of seven million dollars.
This value, announced by the African Football Confederation (CAF), represents an increase of 40 percent compared to the previous edition.
The runner-up of the competition will be entitled to a monetary prize of four million dollars, while the third place will receive 2.5 million dollars and the fourth place, 1.3 million dollars.
After the opening ceremony, the teams from Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea Bissau will face each other at 9 pm, at the Olimpico Stadium, in Abidjan, Group A, in the opening game.
The Angola team (Palancas Negras) only evolves on Monday (15) at 8 pm local time and 9 pm in Angola, with the similar one from Algeria, for group D.
Complete calendar of the first phase of CAN’2023
January 13, 2024
9pm: Côte d’Ivoire – Guinea Bissau
January 14, 2024
3pm: Nigeria-Equatorial Guinea
6pm: Egypt-Mozambique
9pm: Ghana-Cape Verde
January 15, 2024
3pm: Senegal-Gambia
6pm: Cameroon-Guinea
9pm: Algeria-Angola
January 16, 2024
3pm: Burkina Faso-Mauritania
6pm: Tunisia-Namibia
9pm: Mali-South Africa
January 17, 2024
6pm: Morocco-Tanzania
9pm: DR Congo-Zambia
January 18, 2024
3pm: Equatorial Guinea-Guine Bissau
6pm: Côte d’Ivoire-Nigeria
9pm: Egypt-Ghana
January 19, 2024
3pm: Cape Verde-Mozambique
6pm: Senegal-Cameroon
9pm: Guinea-Gambia
January 20, 2024
3pm: Algeria-Burkina Faso
6pm: Mauritania-Angola
9pm: Tunisia-Mali
January 21, 2024
3pm: Morocco-DR Congo
6pm: Zambia-Tanzania
January 22, 2024
6pm: Equatorial Guinea-Côte d’Ivoire
6pm: Guinea Bissau-Nigeria
9pm: Mozambique-Ghana
9pm: Cape Verde-Egypt
January 23, 2024
6pm: Guinea-Senegal
7pm: Gambia-Cameroon
9pm: Angola-Burkina Faso
9pm: Mauritania-Algeria
January 24, 2024
6pm: South Africa-Tunisia
6pm: Namibia-Mali
9pm: Tanzania-DR Congo
9pm: Zambia-Morocco
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