The stage is set for the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 knock out football with Senegal and Cape Verde locking horns in Bafoussam on Tuesday, 25 January 2022.
The Lions of Teranga battle the Blue Sharks in the knockout round of Africa's greatest Football competition.
Senegal – Teranga Lions’ new mission
Alio Cisse's Senegal, tipped to be tournament favorites, are yet to sparkle having only managed one goal in the group stage, collecting one win and two draws. They made it top of Group B with five points.
On a positive note, they are yet to concede a single goal. Credit should go to the defensive discipline led by the Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy, who recently won The Best goalkeeper of the year at the FIFA Awards.
Mendy has been one of Senegal's key players at the tournament so far. So is Liverpool forward Sadio Mane, who scored Senegal's only goal of the tournament which came from the penalty spot in the first group match against Zimbabwe.
Another player that could be key to Senegal's success in the knockout round is Idrissa Gueye. The Paris Saint-Germain Midfielder has been a regular presence having featured in two matches so far.
Cape Verde – Blue Sharks dreaming
Cape Verde enter the game with no pressure, as all the expectations are on their opponents’ shoulders.
Their performance was remarkable, having picked up four points in the group. A win against Ethiopia was followed by a loss to Burkina Faso. The Blue Sharks rounded off their Group matches with a 1-1 draw against hosts Cameroon. Four points were enough for the Island nation to seal a place in the knockout phase.
Head coach Pedro Leitão Brito will be placing his faith in Júlio Tavares and Garry Rodrigues in getting the goals for his side. The duo has scored Cape Verde’s two goals so far.
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