Then there were eight!

While the Africa Cup of Nations is generally popular for its flamboyance, the 20 23 edition in Ivory Coast has undoubtedly delivered some ofthe most eyecatching moments in recent memory. There is more good news by the way – we’re only at the quarter-final stage ofthe tournament! The Round of16 saw African giants Cameroon, whose football federation is led by the legendary Samuel Eto’o, crash out ofthe competition following a 2-0 loss to Nigeria, while reigning champions Senegal suffered a penalty shootout defeat to the host nation, but our attention has now turned to that which awaits us. The next round of fixtures promises more dazzling entertainment, with South Africa set to meet Cape Verde and Ivory Coast preparing for a challenge against Mali! To preview the upcoming round is Soccer Laduma’s international team.

QF1: Nigeria v Angola 2 February (19h00)

Nigeria and Angola face off in the first quarter-final fixture of the tournament on Friday at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny. The Super Eagles head into the match having w on each of their past three games in the tournament, including a convincing 2-0 w in over Cameroon in the round of 16! Having w on the competition three times (1980, 1994, and 2013) already, the w est African giants’ best finish at the show piece since then came in the 2019 edition, w hen they finished as bronze medallists. Although the side is, so far, not as free-scoring as many had expected given the prow ess of their talisman, 2023 CAF Men’s Player of the Year Victor Osimhen, they have been solid in defence, conceding just one goal and keeping three clean sheets in the process. Angola are expected to pose a significant threat to the Nigeria defence, though, as they have one of the most prolific attacks at the tournament, having scored nine goals in four matches so far, including three against Namibia in the previous round. The coastal nation have also kept things tidy in defence, conceding only three times. History beckons for Angola as a w in over Nigeria w ould see them achieve their best-ever result at an Afcon, having never progressed beyond the final eight. Striker Gelson Dala is a player to w atch as his four goals and one assist make him a huge threat for the Nigerian backline. The tw o teams have previously met four times, w ith each side picking up one w in, w hile the other tw o games ended in a draw . Ranked 117th in the w orld by FIFA, Angola w ill be aiming for another big scalp!

QF2: DR Congo v Guinea 2 February (22h00)

DR Congo and Guinea are set to butt heads in w hat promises to be an enthralling quarter-final tie. Judging by w hat has transpired thus far in the tournament – all the shock results and upsets – this fixture w ill be difficult to predict. The National Elephants placed third in Group C before going on to defeat Equatorial Guinea by a goal to nil in the Round of 16 to retain their dream of lifting the continental title. The closest the nation has ever come to w inning the competition is the semi-finals, w hich they last reached in 1976, so the current Guinea squad w ill be determined to etch their names in history. DR Congo, though, w ill be intent on standing in their w ay. The Leopards seem to have luck on their side as they are yet to w in a game in regulation time yet they’ve managed to make it this far! They w ent into the Last 16 against Egypt as underdogs, but, w ith the eyes of the entire continent on them, managed to hold their nerve and beat the north African giants in a dramatic penalty shootout. Having reached the final eight, both sides w ill w ant to go a step closer to achieving the impossible. To do so, how ever, key players w ill need to rise to the occasion. Leopards goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi Nzau scored the w inning penalty that catapulted his team into the next round, but he w ill likely have to be a hero once more as his side looks to silence the potent Guinea attack led by VfB Stuttgart forw ard Serhou Guirassy, w ho w ill be eager to score his first goal of the tournament.

QF3: Mali v Ivory Coast 3 February (19h00)

Mali cemented their spot among the final eight follow ing a victory over Burkina Faso on Tuesday, a game in w hich in-form attacker Lassine Sinayoko, w ho plays his club football for Auxerre in France’s Ligue 2, scored his third goal of the tournament. The Eagles laid dow n an early marker w hen they beat South Africa 2-0 in their opening match of this year’s Afcon, and have managed to remain unbeaten, but they’ll need to be more clinical in front of goal if they’re to go one better than they did 1972, the year the w est African nation finished as runners-up. Mali have since placed third on tw o occasions, including in 2012 follow ing a semi-final defeat to Ivory Coast, w ho they’ve never beaten in five attempts at the Africa Cup of Nations! The Elephants, meanw hile, are perhaps fortunate to even still be in the competition after staring elimination in the face follow ing an incredibly underw helming show ing in Group A. The host nation scraped through w ith three points, and off the back of a humiliating 4-0 loss to Guinea-Bissau in their final group game. That result cost French tactician Jean-Louis Gasset his job mid-tournament, before the Ivorians advanced to the Last 16 as one of the best third-placed teams. Ex-assistant boss Emerse Fae has since been appointed as the Elephants’ caretaker manager and goes into this w eekend’s quarter-final encounter looking for a second victory, having overseen their penalty shootout triumph over reigning champions Senegal. Fae w ill be hoping to continue his record and help Ivory Coast become the first host country since Egypt in 2006 to lift the trophy.

QF4: Cape Verde v South Africa 3 February (22h00)

Many of the nations competing at this stage of the competition have been here before, but not Cape Verde, w hose 1-0 w in over Mauritania in the Last 16 w as their first-ever Africa Cup of Nations knockout triumph in their history! A late penalty, converted by experienced international Ryan Mendes, w as enough for the w est African nation to advance to the quarter-final round, but there are some w ho believe Pedro ‘Bubista’ Brito’s team could spring one or tw o more surprises. Starting three of his country’s four matches so far, 33-year-old w inger Bebe continues to prove his doubters w rong after his disappointing four-year spell at Manchester United betw een 2010 and 2014, w hile 22-year-old Benfica loanee Benchimol is currently averaging a goal contribution every 30 minutes! Their next opponents, South Africa, w ill be full of confidence heading into Saturday’s encounter follow ing their 2-0 victory over Walid Regragui’s Morocco. Goals from Evidence Makgopa and Teboho Mokoena helped Bafana Bafana to their seventh quarter-final in the nine editions they’ve participated in, an impressive record for a country w ith only a single AFCON title! Heading into the next round, no goalkeeper has kept more cleansheets (three) in this year’s competition than Mamelodi Sundow ns’ Ronw en Williams, w hile his club teammate Themba Zw ane has been inspirational in midfield, w ith the 34-year-old having claimed tw o Man of the Match aw ards for the 1996 w inners. Cape Verde and SA have only met once before in the Africa Cup of Nations, a group match in 2013 that ended goalless. Out of all the games to be played over the coming days, South Africans w ill be paying this one the closest attention!