In our series of previewing the forthcoming Africa Cup of Nations, Ismael Kiyonga takes a look at a group that has three giants South Africa, Morocco and Cote d’Ivoire.
The trio is paired along with Namibia in Group D, arguably the one of death but who will fall short depending on the strengths, weakness, coaches and the key players from each side?
South Africa
Nickname: Bafana Bafana
Coach: Stuart Baxter
Afcon Appearances: 9
Best Performance: Champions (1996)
Key Player: Percy Tau (Brighton)
Strengths: Bafana Bafana play a high tempo game capable of unlocking any resilience from an opponent and with the likes of Percy Tau, Hlompho Kekana and Themba Zwane, they have an in-form trio and if they bring their A game, they will be hard to beat.
Weaknesses: Without Keegan Dolly, the burden will be on Tau to score goals and as a team; they are not full of goals. In addition, South Africa always fails tests against big sides and they already have two in this group.
Namibia
Nickname: Brave Warriors
Coach: Ricardo Manneti
Afcon Appearances: 3
Best Performance: Group Stages (1998 & 2008)
Key Player: Benson Chilongo (Ismaily SC)
Strengths: They are a side that plays as a team and always hard to break down.
Weaknesses: Playing against seasoned campaigners in the group will be a hard test for the team.
Cote d’Ivoire
Nickname: The Elephants
Coach: Ibrahim Kamara
Afcon appearances: 23
Best Performance: Champions (1992 & 2015)
Key Player: Wilfried Zaha
Strengths: One of the most balanced quality squads at the Afcon with experienced players as well. The Elephants come into the tournament as strong favourites.
Weaknesses: They have a coach with no experience at this level of the competition and could fail to handle the big egos in the squad.
Morocco
Nickname: Atlas Lions
Coach: Herve Renard
Afcon Appearances: 17
Best Performance: Champions (1976)
Key Player: Hakim Ziyech (Ajax)
Strengths: An experienced side with arguably the best defence on the continent. In Herve Renard, they also have a top coach that has won the competition with two different countries (Zambia and Ivory Coast).
Weaknesses: An experienced but ageing backline could affect their performance against high pressing sides.
