Ivory Coast Miraculously Rises Third in the Group to reach the final and compete with Nigeria for the title!
On February 8, the two rounds of the Africa Cup of Nations ended, Ivory Coast and Nigeria were both eliminated, and Ivory Coast staged a great myth.
Côte d'Ivoire, the host of the Africa Cup of Nations, narrowly missed out in the group stage. They beat Guinea-Bissau 2-0 in the first round and lost their hopes in the next two rounds, losing to Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea in three games, three wins and three defeats, and are in third place.
The Football Federation of Côte d'Ivoire also fired the head coach because of their poor results and they did not want their team to be in the group stage. Despite this, the future of Ivory Coast has not been favored by the fans, and instead of rehiring a new manager, they have handed over the team to an assistant coach.
Ivory Coast reached the round of 16, but their assistant manager got them in trouble. Ivory Coast played Senegal in the last eight of 16 with a 90-minute draw, followed by an extra-time draw and a final penalty shoot-out to reach the quarter-finals with a miraculous 5-4 victory. Although both were sent off, the team beat Mali 2-1 in extra time to advance to the last four.
In the semi-finals between Côte d'Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire reached the final 1-0 thanks to Ali's clever plan. His player played the ball to the back and Alli slotted it into the back of the net. The ball bounced in front of the goal and flew towards the goal by grazing the post.
From 3rd place in the group to the final match, the Ivorians have created a great myth. After the game, the Ivorian players cheered easily on the pitch in what was a hard-earned victory. The team will then play their final match against Nigeria, who will be battling it out for the Africa Cup of Nations.
In the other semi-final, Osman's Nigeria played South Africa for 90 minutes with a score of 1-1. After that, after 30 minutes of extra time, both sides failed to win and had to settle on penalties.
Ivory Coast scored a penalty in the 1-0 defeat to Nigeria, while his team-mate Ekong almost knocked Ivory Coast out of the game. Nowadays, these two"Enemies"When they meet, the Ivorians have a chance to take revenge and win the Africa Cup of Nations if they beat their rivals. While Nigeria have five top teams such as Osman and Iwobi, Ivory Coast also have the likes of Allie and Kessie, and the two sides are not on the same level, plus they have the absolute upper hand on their own turf.