AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS GUIDE: Sadio Mane and defending champions Senegal are in the 'Group of Death,' Mo Salah is desperate to fill glaring hole in his CV with Egypt and Victor Osimhen leads Nigeria's charge
- The Africa Cup of Nations gets underway with hosts Ivory Coast on Saturday
- Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria and Egypt are among the favourites to win the trophy
- Is it a mid-life crisis for De Bruyne? A great player, but what about the new look? Is he recording a song? Go back to being boring Kevin! It's All Kicking Off
The Africa Cup of Nations is edging ever closer with hosts Ivory Coast kicking off the tournament on Saturday against Guinea Bissau.
Senegal are the defending champions following their penalty shootout victory over Egypt the last time the tournament was held.
Sadio Mane was the hero that day and he will be hoping to lead his country to further success, though Salah and Egypt will be looking to right the wrongs from the 2021 edition of the competition.
Morocco's exploits at the World Cup have a few tipping them for another big-tournament charge while the likes of Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon are among those who should not be ruled out.
With the tournament drawing ever closer, Mail Sport previews each group in the competition.
![Senegal are the defending champions and will again be one of the pre-tournament favourites](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/11/08/79882049-12943711-image-a-9_1704960443446.jpg)
Senegal are the defending champions and will again be one of the pre-tournament favourites
Group A: Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria
The hosts kick off the tournament on Saturday when they take on Guinea-Bissau.
Since winning the AFCON in 2015 they have flattered to deceive given their quality, failing to make the last two World Cups and failing to get past the quarter-finals on the continental stage.
They will have the home edge throughout the tournament but perhaps the lack of star quality will hurt them in the latter stages of the competition.
Ivory Coast are captained by Nottingham Forest's Serge Aurier and have a squad that also consists of Ibrahim Sangare, Willy Boly and Franck Kessie. Wilfried Zaha has not been called up, though Sebastian Haller and Simon Adingra have been called up despite recent fitness issues.
![The Ivory Coast team will have the country behind them so will have the home edge in the competition](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79927419-12943711-The_Ivory_Coast_team_will_have_the_country_behind_them_so_will_h-a-1_1705066829222.jpg)
The Ivory Coast team will have the country behind them so will have the home edge in the competition
Nigeria will fancy their chances of a deep run given their squad, even if their has been a late blow in the form of Bayer Leverkusen forward Victor Boniface withdrawing through injury.
Napoli's Victor Osimhen was recently crowned as the African Player of the Year, while the likes of AC Milan's Samuel Chukwueze and Atalanta Ademola Lookman add to what is perhaps the best attack in the tournament.
Not many will fancy the chances of Equatorial Guinea or Guinea-Bissau going into the competition.
However, Equatorial Guinea were able to hold Ivory Coast to a 1-1 draw in the year the latter won the competition in 2015, while Guinea-Bissau beat Nigeria as recent as March 2023 in an African Cup of Nations qualifier.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Victor Osimhen (Nigeria)
Schedule
Ivory Coast vs Guinea Bissau (January 13)
Nigeria vs Equatorial Guinea (January 14)
Equatorial Guinea vs Guinea-Bissau (January 18)
Ivory Coast vs Nigeria (January 18)
Equatorial Guinea vs Ivory Coast (January 22)
Guinea-Bissau vs Nigeria (January 22)
![African Player of the Year Victor Osimhen will be looking to fire Nigeria to glory](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79885111-12943711-African_Player_of_the_Year_Victor_Osimhen_will_be_looking_to_fir-a-2_1705066829223.jpg)
African Player of the Year Victor Osimhen will be looking to fire Nigeria to glory
Group B: Cape Verde, Egypt, Ghana, Mozambique
Egypt have won a record seven AFCON titles and have the best player in the competition to their name in Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.
They don't have the best overall squad, but if Salah hits top form then The Pharaohs will have every chance of going one better than they did in 2021 - where they lost to Senegal in the final after a penalty shootout.
Salah vowed he wants to win the competition after departing Premier League leaders Liverpool, but he will need all the support he can get with former Aston Villa player Trezeguet, Arsenal's bit-part midfielder Mohamed Elneny and Al Ittihad's Ahmed Hegazy the other players of note.
Their biggest challengers from Group B come in the form of Ghana whose star player is West Ham's Mohamed Kudus.
![Mohamed Salah will be looking to win silverware with his country after previous disappointment](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79933077-12943711-Mohamed_Salah_will_be_looking_to_win_silverware_with_his_country-a-3_1705066829223.jpg)
Mohamed Salah will be looking to win silverware with his country after previous disappointment
Other recognisable faces include Crystal Palace striker Jordan Ayew, Athletic Bilbao's in-form forward Inaki Williams, Mohammed Salisu and Daniel Amartey.
Ghana coach Chris Hughton decided to leave out Arsenal's Thomas Partey and Brighton's Tariq Lamptey from the squad due to injuries.
Mozambique and Cape Verde will likely be competing to qualify as one of the best third-placed teams.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Mohamed Salah (Egypt) - with special mention to Mohammed Kudus (Ghana).
Schedule
Egypt vs Mozambique - January 14
Ghana vs Cape Verde - January 14
Egypt vs Ghana - January 18
Cape Verde vs Mozambique - January 19
Cape Verde vs Egypt - January 22
Mozambique vs Ghana - January 22
Group C: Senegal, Cameroon, Guinea, The Gambia
Senegal are the defending champions after winning the tournament for the first time by defeating Egypt the last time it was held.
However, this year they are said to be in the 'Group of Death' alongside Cameroon, Guinea and The Gambia.
They are led by the newly-wedded Sadio Mane who scored the decisive spot-kick in the penalty shootout which decided that final.
Senegal also have Chelsea's Nicolas Jackson in their ranks and are the statistical favourites with Opta to win the trophy again, ahead of hosts Ivory Coast and World Cup semi-finalists Morocco.
Also in Group C is Cameroon, where much of the attention has surrounded Manchester United keeper Andre Onana in the weeks leading up to the tournament.
Onana famously fell out with manager Rigobert Song and the president of the country's football association, Samuel Eto'o, at the 2022 World Cup.
![Much attention will be on Andre Onana who famously fell out with manager Rigobert Song (right) and Samuel Eto'o at the 2022 World Cup](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79927461-12943711-Much_attention_will_be_on_Andre_Onana_who_famously_fell_out_with-a-4_1705066829224.jpg)
Much attention will be on Andre Onana who famously fell out with manager Rigobert Song (right) and Samuel Eto'o at the 2022 World Cup
After a brief retirement from international football, he returned to the set-up in September, and despite questions over his inclusion in the squad for AFCON, he has made the team - even if there are no guarantees he will start.
Their chances will have been hurt by the ankle injury sustained to Brentford's Bryan Mbeumo, which ruled him out of the tournament.
They are joined by Guinea - who beat Nigeria in a pre-tournament friendly - and have potentially the player to watch out for in the group in the form of Serhou Guirrassy. The forward has scored 19 goals in 16 games for Bundesliga side Stuttgart this season.
Guirassy limped off against Nigeria but his manager said that his injury doesn't look too serious.
Gambia are the lowest ranked side in the tournament but shouldn't be underestimated after reaching the quarter-finals the last time the tournament was held - beating Guinea in the Round of 16.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Serhou Guirassy (Guinea)
Schedule
Senegal vs Gambia (January 15)
Cameroon vs Guinea (January 15)
Senegal vs Cameroon (January 19)
Guinea vs Gambia (January 19)
Gambia vs Cameroon (January 23)
Guinea vs Senegal (January 23)
![Serhou Guirassy (left) is an injury worry for Guinea heading into the tournament](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79927463-12943711-Serhou_Guirassy_left_is_an_injury_worry_for_Guinea_heading_into_-a-5_1705066829224.jpg)
Serhou Guirassy (left) is an injury worry for Guinea heading into the tournament
Group D: Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Mauritania
Algeria are looking to bounce back from their miserable 2021 AFCON campaign where they finished bottom of a group including Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea and Sierra Leone.
They had gone into the tournament as one of the favourites, spearheaded by then Man City star Riyad Mahrez.
Mahrez, now at Al-Ahli, is still the star and will be keen to impress at what could be his final major international tournament.
Other players of note including Roma's Houssem Aouar, AC Milan's Ismael Bennacer and Rayan Ait Nouri of Wolves. Meaning, that if they get things right they should reach the latter stages of the tournament.
![Riyad Mahrez (right) and Algeria will be hoping for a much better tournament than last time](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79927471-12943711-Riyad_Mahrez_right_and_Algeria_will_be_hoping_for_a_much_better_-a-6_1705066829225.jpg)
Riyad Mahrez (right) and Algeria will be hoping for a much better tournament than last time
Burkina Faso reached the semi-finals last time out and will again be looking to cause a surprise with the likes of Bayer Leverkusen's Edmond Tapsoba, Bertrand Traore of Aston Villa and Bournemouth's Dango Ouattara.
The other two sides in the group are Angola whose key player is commonly known as Show, and Mauritania who are perhaps the underdogs of the group.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Riyad Mahrez (Algeria)
Schedule
Algeria vs Angola (January 15)
Burkina Faso vs Mauritania (January 16)
Algeria vs Burkina Faso (January 20)
Mauritania vs Angola (January 20)
Mauritania vs Algeria (January 23)
Angola vs Burkina Faso (January 23)
![Burkina Faso reached the semi-finals in the last AFCON and their fans will be hoping they can spring a surprise again](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79927485-12943711-Burkina_Faso_reached_the_semi_finals_in_the_last_AFCON_and_their-a-7_1705066829225.jpg)
Burkina Faso reached the semi-finals in the last AFCON and their fans will be hoping they can spring a surprise again
Group E: Mali, Namibia, South Africa and Tunisia
Perhaps the weakest group of the six, with the strongest side perhaps being Tunisia.
Tunisia beat France during the recent World Cup, though Les Bleus had already secured qualification going into the game.
They also had a mixed AFCON campaign last time out, beating Nigeria on their way to the quarter-finals, but finishing third in their group and getting eliminated by Burkina Faso.
It is a very open group though and Mali and South Africa will be looking to benefit from avoiding some of the tougher teams in the competition.
![Mali's key player will be Tottenham midfielder Yves Bissouma who has enjoyed excellent form this season](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79933103-12943711-Mali_s_key_player_will_be_Tottenham_midfielder_Yves_Bissouma_who-a-8_1705066829226.jpg)
Mali's key player will be Tottenham midfielder Yves Bissouma who has enjoyed excellent form this season
Mali are missing some big players through injury including the likes of Crystal Palace's Cheick Doucoure, Atalanta's El Bilal Toure, Ibrahima Kone and former Southampton winger Moussa Djenepo.
However, they do have strong players to their squad still including Tottenham's Yves Bissouma.
South Africa have progressed since missing the last tournament with only one defeat in their last 13 games.
Namibia are the underdogs after finishing bottom of their group in the three previous times they have made the Africa Cup of Nations.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Yves Bissouma (Mali)
Schedule
Tunisia vs Namibia (January 16)
Mali vs South Africa (January 16)
Tunisia vs Mali (January 20)
South Africa vs Namibia (January 21)
Namibia vs Mali (January 24)
South Africa vs Tunisia (January 24)
Group F: DR Congo, Morocco, Tanzania, Zambia
Morocco are many people's favourites to win the trophy - going off their incredible performance at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
They reached the semi-finals where they lost out to France - but became the first African nation in history to reach that stage of the tournament.
However, a lot can change in just over a year so it won't be so simple for Morocco in a tournament they have not won since 1976.
Head coach Walid Regragui has a strong squad, which includes Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi, and they will be expected to go far in the competition.
![Morocco will be favourites thanks to their exploits at the World Cup in Qatar in 2022](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/12/13/79885247-12943711-Morocco_will_be_favourites_thanks_to_their_exploits_at_the_World-a-9_1705066829227.jpg)
Morocco will be favourites thanks to their exploits at the World Cup in Qatar in 2022
Their clash with DR Congo on January 21 will have a significant bearing on who qualifies top from Group E - with the Leopards possessing a lot of experience in this tournament and finishing third back in 2015.
Tanzania are the second lowest ranked side in the tournament and have a squad including players from the non-leagues of English football.
Zambia meanwhile will look to progress as one of the best third-placed teams.
PLAYER TO WATCH - Achraf Hakimi (Morocco)
Schedule
Morocco vs Tanzania (January 17)
DR Congo vs Zambia (January 17)
Zambia vs Tanzania (January 21)
South Africa vs Namibia (January 21)
Zambia vs Morocco (January 24)
Tanzania vs DR Congo (January 24)