By: Nana Kwame Bediako
The 34th edition of the AFCON is systematically taking shape as twenty of the twenty-four teams that began the tournament head back home. A handful of the tournament favourites bowed out in the last 16 stages.
On Friday, February 2, 2024, Nigeria and DR Congo booked their spots in the semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations after beating Angola and Guinea respectfully. Nigeria will be hoping for another triumph in the AFCON since they last won it in 2013, while DR Congo will be looking to better their 1974 triumph.
Host nation Côte d’Ivoire, after a very shaky performance in the group stage, has been pulling off some impressive wins in their last two knockout games against Senegal and Mali.
Côte d’Ivoire displayed an act of determination as they beat Mali with 10 men after extra time. South Africa, on the other hand, put Cape Verde to sleep with some heroics from goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who made four fantastic saves in the shootout.
The semifinal rounds up with a spicy encounter as current tournament favourite Nigeria squares off with South Africa as host nation Côte d’Ivoire welcomes a vibrant DR Congo side who is always ready to cause an upset for the Ivorian fans.
The two semifinal games are slated for Wednesday, February 7, 2024, as Nigeria takes on South Africa at exactly 5 p.m. while Côte d’Ivoire plays DR Congo at 8 p.m.
All matches will be live on GTV Sports +, GTV, Obonu TV, and Garden City TV.
