In an African Cup of Nations full of surprises, only eight teams remain. There’s a wide-open feeling to AFCON that isn’t usually present in other international tournaments like the World Cup and Euro Championships.
Defending champions Algeria and Ghana bowed out in the group stage while Gambia made the quarterfinal in their first-ever AFCON appearance.
We’ll take a look back at the Round of 16 and look ahead to some of the quarterfinals soccer betting action.
African Cup of Nations Round of 16 Recap
Ten-Man Gabon Fall Short
With captain Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang back in England with a heart abnormality, Gabon were left without their top scorer. They did well to finish second in their group ahead of Nigeria, but couldn’t get past Burkina Faso in the Round of 16.
Gabon went down to 10 men in the 67th minute down 1-0 but miraculously found an equalizer in the 90th. They ultimately fell 7-6 in a dramatic penalty shootout. Burkina Faso are listed as +255 underdogs for betting online vs Tunisia.
Tunisia Pull Off the Upset
Speaking of Tunisia, they managed to pull off the biggest upset of the round. Youssef Msakni has scored 15 goals for Tunisia, but none bigger than the 47th-minute goal vs Nigeria that ended up being the difference in the match.
The Super Eagles were woeful and Alex Iwobi getting sent off minutes after he came on summed up their night. Tunisia is favored to make a second consecutive semifinal appearance and looks like a good pick at +140.
Gambia Make History
Tunisia weren’t the only side to pull off an upset in the round of 16 as Gambia continued their surprising run. Minnows Gambia are in the quarterfinals in their first AFCON appearance with wins over Tunisia in the Group Stage and Guinea in the round of 16.
The Gambian defense hung on as they have all tournament and a Musa Barrow goal sent the Scorpions to the quarterfinals with a 1-0 win. Gambia are huge +700 underdogs vs hosts Cameroon but have allowed just one goal in four matches.
While Cameroon should win, I think there’s value on Gambia in this one.
Tragedy Overshadows Cameroon’s Win
Cameroon defeated a Comoros side 2-1 that had to use an outfield player in net. Chaker Alhadhur, usually a left back, faced a near-impossible task, especially after Comoros went down to 10 men just seven minutes in.
He performed admirably but the hosts advanced after a 2-1 win on goals from Karl Toko Ekambi and Vincent Aboubakar. Aboubakar is currently the leading scorer in the tournament, with six goals and Toko Ekambi is tied for second with three. Cameroon now hosts Gambia in the quarters and are one-goal favorites.
The game vs Comoros was overshadowed by news of a stampede outside the stadium prior to kickoff, which led to eight deaths.
Senegal Move On
It wasn’t necessarily convincing, but Senegal defeated nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 to book a spot in the quarterfinals. Liverpool talisman Sadio Mane scored the first of Senegal’s goals but was taken off shortly after with a suspected concussion. His status is worth monitoring ahead of Senegal’s match vs Equatorial Guinea in the quarterfinals.
Senegal are one of the most popular soccer picks to win it all but could do with a better quarterfinal performance. They’re favored vs Equatorial Guinea but this could be the ultimate trap game for them.
Morocco’s Comeback Effort
Morocco surprisingly went down 1-0 to Malawi within ten minutes. The goal didn’t cause panic as the Atlas Lions leveled the match just before halftime from a Youssef En-Nesyri strike.
In the second half Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi came up clutch, like he often has in his short time with PSG. The right back won the game and scored on a free kick for a second straight match.
Morocco are one of the most talented teams remaining and have a blockbuster match vs Egypt in the quarters that could go either way.
Salah Seals it for Egypt
This was the most anticipated match of the round and there was definitely some drama. Egypt was content to sit back and let Ivory Coast make mistakes on a poor pitch but it didn’t lead to any goals.
After a scoreless 120 minutes, the match went into a penalty shootout. Mo Salah scored the winning spot-kick to capitalize on an Eric Bailly miss and the Egyptians advanced despite scoring just two goals in four games.
Egypt will probably sit back once again vs Morocco and try to nick a result.
Equatorial Guinea Relishing the Moment
Equatorial Guinea, competing in just their third African Cup of Nations, ended Algeria’s 35-game unbeaten streak in the Group Stage to send them packing. Equatorial Guinea were once again underdogs coming into their clash vs Group F winners Mali.
Like the Egypt vs Ivory Coast game, Mali vs Equatorial Guinea finished in a scoreless draw after 120 grueling minutes. Each team only had one shot on target and misplaced passes were the norm rather than the exception.
Even so, Equatorial Guinea came up victorious in a lengthy penalty shootout. They’re once again underdogs vs Senegal in the sportsbook but it’s hard not to root for them on this special run.
